This chapter examines how local context shapes the emergence of activists, focusing on Alameda, a district in central Mexico City marked by the 1985 earthquake and neoliberal reforms of the 1980s. Most residents live in dilapidated rental housing, yet the neighbourhood’s centrality to protest created conditions for political engagement. The chapter follows the trajectory of Señor Ángel, whose entry into activism was shaped by personal loss, employment instability, and exposure to the district’s history of mobilisation. Notably, he acquired skills traditionally associated with women, performing tasks in the neighbourhood usually undertaken by female activists. This case highlights the gendered nature of local activism and the ways in which spatial, social, and historical factors intersect to produce engagement. Through analysis of individual trajectories alongside broader social dynamics, the chapter explores themes central to the sociology of collective action: the interplay of social mobility, gender, and territorial embeddedness; the conditions of felicity or infelicity in activism; the “gray zones” between formal roles and informal participation; and the moral economies sustaining local engagement. The chapter thus offers a nuanced understanding of how district-specific contexts shape both the experiences and capacities of activists.