The New York Times (reg. required) compiled reports from various cities across the U.S. today to give us a sense of the vibe across the country. The last report in the article was dispatched from Mexico City, where activists urged Mexicans to boycott all American companies and products yesterday:

A call to boycott American brands and businesses got a lackluster response in the capital today despite widespread circulation on the Internet and in the media. Student protesters blocked entry to a Wal-Mart in a working-class neighborhood of Mexico City but elsewhere many were using the May Day holiday to get shopping done.

“Life has to go on and you have to get the shopping done,” said Martha Juarez, 40, a nurse, shopping at a Wal-Mart supermarket chain.” As for avoiding American-owned stores she said: “They are franchises that Mexicans buy, so boycotting them means boycotting Mexicans.”

Mariela Vallejo decided against buying some crackers because they are made by Nabisco. “It’s a way of supporting them, said Ms. Vallejo, 31, a federal government employee. But she smiled with embarrassment when reminded that she had just shopped in a Wal-Mart-owned store.

Ignacio Lopez, 34, a lawyer, who arrived at Starbucks here on a Harley Davidson motorcycle wearing a Harley Davidson jacket, was openly dismissive of the boycott. “It’s absurd to support this with a boycott.”

Is this a fair representation of how the boycott was observed (or not) on the other side of the border? Let’s take a look at Mexican media to get a fuller story:

El Universal reports on a group of Mazahua indians who converged on a McDonald’s in Toluca (Estado de Mexico) to offer diners tortillas and sopes in exchange for them not eating at the American chain, in a show of support to “our migrant brothers”. A chain reaction was started, as diners left the establishment one by one, leaving the food and drink they had purchased on the tables.

El Universal also reported on a Wal-Mart in Mexico City that was temporarily closed, its entrance blocked by high school students. The students were attacked by a group of 30 people demanding to get into the store.

Left-leaning Mexico City newspaper La Jornada’s coverage of the boycott leads with “Blasee about the anti-U.S. boycott in Mexico City supermarkets” and reports:

Consumerism did not cease on the day of the anti-U.S. economic boycott. The common denominator in Mexico City was the indifference that allowed many Mexicans to venture out, without regret, to the supermarket chains controlled by foreign capital to do their grocery shopping.

What about in other parts of the country? Hermosillo’s El Imparcial reports:

Just lika any other day, the U.S. franchises in the city had the regular clientele, and in some cases more customers since yesterday was a holiday.

Óscar Acuña, manager of Dominos Pizza on Miguel Alemán street, said that they had received even more calls for delivery than usual given the May 1st long weekend, and believed that the residents of Cajeme (Sonora) ignored the boycott.

On a trip to other franchises in the city, such as McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger King, one could also observe a normal number of diners, some of whom were interviewed and emphasized the fact that they supported migrant workers.

But they also stated that they had gone to eat hambugers because it was a holiday, since they couldn’t do that during the week.

Thoughts?