Skyline image of downtown Asheville, featuring City Hall, the Buncombe County Courthouse, and the Jackson Building. (Photo: WLOS Staff)
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) —Organizers of the WNC Alignment websiteare working to spread the word on social media about planned events in protest of theG20 Finance Track meetings taking place in Asheville this weekend.
The meetings, taking place at the Omni Grove Park Inn, will bring together G20 finance ministers and central bank governors from 20 countries, including the United States.
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In itsorganizational materials, WNC Alignment lists four “People Over Profits” events over three days starting Friday:
- Aug. 28: 4:30-5:30 p.m. — Banner drop on bridges in Asheville
- Aug. 28: 6-6:30 p.m. — Press conference in Pack Square Plaza, next to the Asheville Art Museum
- Aug. 29: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. — Lining Merrimon Avenue
- Aug. 30: 4-6 p.m. — WNC C20 Vigil and Summit at Pack Square Amphitheater
In detailed materials shared online, WNC Alignment said Friday’s banner drop will include targeted messaging at overpasses along Interstate 240 and Interstate 26 from Charlotte Street to Asheville Regional Airport. Saturday’s “Line the Streets” event encourages participants to hold protest signs along the 500-700 block of Merrimon Avenue. Sunday’s vigil will focus on Helene recovery, organizers said.
File photo of Asheville, North Carolina’s, skyline. (Photo: WLOS Staff)
In those materials, organizers say they want to “raise awareness about our local recovery, its ongoing challenges and how these struggles are linked to struggles across the globe” when it comes to Helene. Organizers said they want to focus on climate change and its connection to natural disasters like Helene.
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“We know that climate change made Helene much worse, and the global dependence on fossil fuels is supercharging climate disasters around the world. Our lives and our communities have been deemed expendable as our governments continue to prop up fossil fuel interests and prioritize cryptocurrency over meaningful debt relief,” the group said.
Kim Miller, a spokesperson for the city of Asheville, confirmed the city has not received any applications for permits or notifications of non-permitted free-speech assemblies. Miller said such permitting would apply in most protest and rally cases.
According to the city’s online form, demonstrations and marches, unless permitted, are prohibited from blocking streets or intersections or obstructing traffic flow. The policy states that demonstrators are asked to stay on sidewalks and abide by all traffic rules.
What is the G20?
The G20, or Group of 20, as described on the meeting’s Miami website, is “an international forum that brings together the world’s major advanced and emerging economies to discuss and coordinate economic policy. Its participants represent about 85% of global gross domestic product (GDP) and two-thirds of the world’s population.”
Participating countries include Brazil, China, India, Germany, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, England and the United States.
The events in Asheville are meetings leading up to the final G20 meetings during President Donald Trump’s Leaders Summit, scheduled for Dec. 14-15 at Trump National Doral in Miami, Florida.
