Activists from Oxfam used giant puppets in Soweto to mock US President Donald Trump's absence from the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg. The performance depicted world leaders united on taxing the super-rich, while Trump turned his back on the group. This symbolic act underscored the US decision to skip the event, allowing the summit to proceed without objection.
On Saturday, as the G20 Leaders’ Summit began at Nasrec in Johannesburg, Oxfam International activists brought a creative protest to Soweto Towers, just south of the city. Dressed in their signature 'Big Heads' costumes portraying various G20 figures, they enacted a scene of collaboration among global leaders.
In the tableau, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva passed a large rugby ball inscribed with 'Tax the Super Rich' to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. This gesture symbolized the handover of the agenda on wealth taxation, following Lula's achievement of global consensus on the issue during Brazil's 2024 G20 presidency. Surrounding them were puppets of French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, forming a unified team.
Isolated on the sidelines, the Trump puppet sat with its back to the others, donning a red peak cap, representing the US stance on inequality and its boycott of the summit. Oxfam G20 policy adviser Isobel Frye explained the setup: “Behind me, you’ll see a tableau of the presidents of G20 states, which include President Lula and President Ramaphosa, who, between them, have a large rugby ball that says ‘Tax the Super Rich’. We see President Trump with his back to the team, indicating the US’s position on the G20 as well as its position on inequality.”
Trump's announcement just 10 days prior that the US would not send a delegation disrupted plans for Vice-President JD Vance's involvement. Consequently, 18 G20 leaders, along with the European Union and African Union, adopted South Africa's G20 Declaration without US participation or objection that morning. South Africa declined to include a US observer team in the closing ceremony on November 23, opting instead for a low-key, offsite handover of the G20 presidency to the US sometime the following week.