Hundreds of financial leaders, central bank governors and journalists from the world’s largest economies have arrived in Asheville for this week’s G20 finance track meeting.
The gathering at the Omni Grove Park Inn will put a global spotlight on Western North Carolina’s recovery from Hurricane Helene. It’s also expected to bring up to $2 million in spending at local businesses.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shared a video on X Sunday evening that highlighted the Trump administration’s efforts to support the recovery, pointing to $5 billion in post-storm federal assistance.
But the damage caused by the historic disaster far eclipses that amount.
In recent days, demonstrators hit the streets of Asheville to protest what they said is the failure of the Trump administration and Congress to help Western North Carolina fully rebuild.
Cody Cogdell, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, was among those who addressed a crowd of dozens of people in Asheville’s Pack Square Friday evening.
“Basically, the whole reason we’re out here is to fight against this lie that Western North Carolina has recovered and that any recovery we have had has been a result of our federal government,” Cogdell, who lives in Rutherford County, said in an interview.
Standing nearby was fellow protester Lola LaFey of West Asheville. She said her property was damaged and her husband sustained minor injuries when a tree fell on their home during Helene.
“This sign says, ‘Tariffs won’t help,’ and then it says, ‘War won’t help,’” LaFey said in an interview. “And on it is a picture of what my house looked like from Helene. You see a bed that’s covered in debris, and my husband was in this bed when the tree fell.”
While she and her husband endured a lot in the storm, LaFey noted others had it worse, including a coworker who lost her home and would like to see G20 leaders do more during their visit to Asheville.
“She said we should be handing out shovels and hammers so that they can help us finish the job,” LaFey said.
Representatives from the Sunrise Movement, Asheville Food and Beverage United, the Democratic Socialists of America and other groups also spoke at the event.
M.J. Tucker, a founding member of the Helene Survivors Committee, spoke about the challenges still facing community members who survived the storm. Tucker helped organize relief for residents who had lost their housing and were using FEMA vouchers to stay at more than 42 hotels in the hurricane’s aftermath.
“If we look from Swannanoa to Chimney Rock to even Bat Cave, we see that the roads are still out, the bridges are still down, and the lack of funding for infrastructure in this community has left us vulnerable to the effect of flash floods and other extreme weather,” Tucker said.
A total of $60 billion in damage
The protests continued on Saturday along Merrimon Avenue, with dozens of people holding signs calling for action on climate change, income inequality and disaster aid.
At one intersection was 72-year-old Asheville resident Tom Sullivan, who calls himself the Asheville Sign Guy. For the past year, he’s spent several days a week holding thought-provoking signs while dancing at street corners throughout the city.
On Saturday, he was holding a sign reading, “$60 Billion Helene Damage to WNC.”
“And we’ve gotten like, what, 13% of the money that’s needed to make up that?” Sullivan said, pointing to his sign.
According to a recent report from Governor Josh Stein’s office, the state has received only around 16% of the amount needed to rebuild. In June, Stein urged lawmakers in Washington to provide $10 billion in additional funding.
Across Merrimon Avenue, demonstrator Anne Elise Russell agreed with Sullivan’s sentiment.
“For Trump to designate Asheville as a place to hold the G20 when we haven’t received all of the recovery funding that we’ve asked for from the federal level is ridiculous,” she said.
Standing next to her, her father, Mitch Russell, said he’s worried the U.S. is taking a turn toward a new Gilded Age where the gap between the ultra-rich and everyone else is widening.
‘Half the downtown is gone’
The weekend’s protests ended with a vigil Sunday evening at Pack Square Park, where about 100 people gathered in the late summer sun.
Leslie Boyd, who helped organize the event, said the focus was on celebrating the community members who’ve fueled the recovery while also grieving what’s been lost and all the work that’s still left to do.
“You leave Asheville, drive 10 minutes and you’ll go into the Swannanoa River Valley, or if you go up the French Broad, if you go to, say, Marshall – that’s such a sweet little town,” Boyd said in an interview. “And half the downtown is gone. Just gone.”
Asked about the stakes for the region if there’s no more federal aid, Boyd said she’s not sure how people will manage.
“I think we’ll vote,” she said. “And we’ll vote like we’ve never voted before.”
In a call with reporters on Friday, a senior Treasury official said President Trump has prioritized rebuilding Western North Carolina. The official, who was not authorized to speak on the record, also noted that the G20 will bring visitor dollars as well as media coverage that will boost the region’s tourism economy.
