Two decades ago, I stood on the streets of Genoa, shouting slogans against the G7. Today, I watch its collapse from the sidelines, a mix of vindication and melancholy washing over me.
The Genoa Protests: A Turning Point
In 2001, the G8 summit in Genoa drew tens of thousands of protesters. I was among them, a young activist convinced that the gathering of world leaders represented everything wrong with global governance: inequality, environmental destruction, and corporate overreach. The protests turned violent, with police crackdowns and the tragic death of Carlo Giuliani. For many of us, the summit symbolized the arrogance of power.
From Hope to Disillusionment
Over the years, I watched the G7—expanded to include Russia, then reduced again—lose its relevance. The 2008 financial crisis, the rise of China, the COVID-19 pandemic, and climate emergencies exposed the limitations of a club that excluded major economies and failed to deliver on promises. The 2025 summit in Canada was a farce, with leaders bickering over trade and tariffs while the world burned.
The Collapse of a Vision
Now, in 2026, the G7 is effectively dead. The United States has withdrawn, citing America First policies. European nations are fractured over migration and energy. Japan and Canada are focused on regional alliances. The once-mighty forum has been reduced to a talking shop, its decisions ignored by the Global South and emerging powers.
I once believed that dismantling the G7 would pave the way for a more just world order. Instead, we have chaos: trade wars, climate inaction, and a vacuum filled by authoritarian regimes. The protests of my youth seem naive in hindsight. We demanded change but offered no viable alternative.
A Personal Reflection
My journey from protester to observer has taught me that institutions, however flawed, provide structure. Their collapse does not automatically bring liberation; it often brings fragmentation. The G7's demise is not a victory for grassroots movements but a symptom of a deeper crisis in multilateralism.
As I watch the news of the final G7 communiqué—a weak document with no binding commitments—I feel a strange sadness. The world I protested against is gone, but what replaces it is not the utopia we imagined. It is a world of competing blocs, rising nationalism, and forgotten promises.
The G7 is dead. Long live what comes next—if we can build it together.
