Workers stage ‘Ball without Billionaires’ to protest Bezos ahead of Met Gala

Hundreds of organisers and Amazon workers took streets to stage a fashion event, raising awareness on worker rights

Just hours before the 2026 Met Gala, hundreds of labor organizers staged their own counter–fashion show in downtown Manhattan, protesting Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s involvement in this year’s event.

 

 

 

 

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Hundreds gathered in the Meatpacking District to create their own fashion spectacle ahead of the Gala, with ordinary people showcasing homemade outfits on a makeshift runway.

Dubbed 'The Ball Without Billionaires', the event was hosted by fashion stylist Gabriella Karefa-Johnson and Abbott Elementary actress Lisa Ann Walter, who mocked Bezos as a “Q-tip with a yacht” and “very bald.”

The catwalk was taken over by Amazon workers wearing custom couture—many of whom had been injured during their warehouse jobs. Local activists also participated, raising concerns about Amazon’s AI data centers. Slogans on garments included phrases like “The Devil Wears Amazon” and “No AI.”

NOW: Protest outside Met Gala event in Manhattan, put on their own red carpet show

Video by Ed Quinn | Licensing @FreedomNTV [e-mail] pic.twitter.com/L0maKjpOiE

— Oliya Scootercaster 🛴 (@ScooterCasterNY) May 4, 2026

“If you ask almost any Amazon worker, they’ll know someone who died because of Amazon’s greed”, said a former warehouse employee. “I have the names of all our fallen co-workers whose deaths could have been prevented if Amazon acted responsibly.”

The president of the Service Employees International Union also appeared, standing in front of a makeshift bodega reading “Labour is power,” wearing a bold wig and sunglasses. In her remarks, she highlighted challenges facing workers, including wage stagnation, surveillance, immigration enforcement, and the growing influence of AI.

“The cherry on top of this shit sundae is that our paychecks don't cover the cost of living in MAGA America”, she said.

Here at the Met Gala today. Several w/@riseandresistny showed up in dazzling outfits but they didn’t drop the reported $100k to get into the event - instead, they staged a “Resistance Red Carpet” against one of the gala’s big backers Jeff Bezos. More updates over @HuffPost pic.twitter.com/oZl8oCYBQ9

— Ben Blanchet (@BenCBlanchet) May 4, 2026

 

Other protestors at the event held up signs which read “Blood for Oil” and “War. What is it good for? Profits”.

As celebrities prepared to walk the Met Gala’s iconic red carpet just miles away, this alternative runway made a different kind of statement—one that centered on workers, not wealth.