Anti-Bezos campaign calls for Met Gala boycott as protests mount in New York
An organised campaign has formally urged attendees to avoid the event, citing the billionaire's role as co-chair and sponsor
A specific campaign has issued a formal call for a boycott of the upcoming Met Gala in New York, targeting the event's current sponsorship structure. The annual gathering, which serves as a fundraising vehicle for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute, is scheduled to take place on Monday.
This year's iteration of the star-studded affair is being sponsored and co-chaired by billionaire Jeff Bezos and his wife, Lauren Sanchez Bezos. The decision to align the event with their names has triggered immediate institutional pushback, resulting in a series of protests aimed at the sponsorship arrangement.
Protesters have mobilised prior to the gala, with demonstrations materialising in response to the announcement of Bezos and Sanchez Bezos taking on the co-chair role. The campaign argues that the involvement of the technology magnate and his spouse in the governance of the event warrants a refusal of attendance from the public and celebrity community.
The Met Gala typically draws significant media coverage and high-profile celebrity attendance, functioning as a cornerstone of the museum's cultural calendar. However, the current controversy centres on the specific nature of the sponsorship deal rather than the event's traditional themes or artistic curation.
While the sponsorship has prompted these organised objections, the extent of the boycott's success remains uncertain. It is currently unknown how many high-profile figures will decline to attend or what the overall impact of the campaign will have on the museum's fundraising objectives for the year.
The situation highlights a growing tension between traditional cultural institutions and modern corporate sponsorship models. As the gala approaches, observers are watching to see if the protests will translate into tangible changes in attendance or if the event will proceed as planned despite the opposition.
