VENICE, Italy — Lots of of protesters marched by Venice’s central streets on Saturday to say “No” to billionaire Jeff Bezos, his bride and their much-anticipated wedding ceremony extravaganza, which reached its third and closing day amid celebrity-crowded events and the outcries of drained residents.
On Friday, the world’s fourth-richest man and his bride Lauren Sanchez Bezos tied the knot throughout a personal ceremony with round 200 superstar friends on the secluded island of San Giorgio.
The marriage, nonetheless, divided Venice, with some activists protesting it as an exploitation of town by the billionaire Bezos, whereas peculiar residents undergo from overtourism, excessive housing prices and the fixed menace of climate-induced flooding.
As the 2 newlyweds ready for the ultimate social gathering on Saturday night, a whole lot of Venetians and protesters from throughout Italy crammed Venice’s tiny streets with colourful banners studying “Kisses Sure, Bezos No” and “No Bezos, no Struggle.”
The demonstration contrasted with the costly wedding ceremony bonanza, seen by critics as an affront to the lagoon metropolis’s fragile surroundings and its residents, overwhelmed by throngs of vacationers.
“We’re right here to proceed ruining the plans of those wealthy individuals, who accumulate cash by exploiting many different individuals … whereas the circumstances of this metropolis stay precarious,” mentioned Martina Vergnano, one of many demonstrators.
The protest organizers had welcomed information that Saturday’s wedding ceremony social gathering, to be initially held on in central Venice, was later moved to a former medieval shipyard, the Arsenale, amid excessive safety.
Bezos donated 1 million euros ($1.17 million) every to a few environmental analysis organizations working to protect Venice, in keeping with Corila, the Venetian environmental analysis affiliation.
However many protesters noticed the transfer as a transparent instance of “greenwashing.”
“We would like a free Venice, which is lastly devoted to its residents. … These donations are only a distress and solely geared toward clearing Bezos’ conscience,” mentioned Flavio Cogo, a Venetian activist who joined Saturday’s protest.
Particulars of the unique wedding ceremony ceremony Friday evening have been a intently guarded secret, till Sánchez Bezos posted to Instagram a photograph of herself beaming in a white robe as she stood alongside a tuxedo-clad Bezos.
Athletes, celebrities, influencers and enterprise leaders converged to enjoy extravagance that was as a lot a testomony to the couple’s love as to their extraordinary wealth.
The star-studded visitor checklist included Oprah Winfrey and NFL nice Tom Brady, together with Hollywood stars Leonardo Di Caprio and Orlando Bloom, tech entrepreneur and philanthropist Invoice Gates and prime socialites, together with the Kardashian-Jenner clan.
Ivanka Trump, her husband Jared Kushner, and their three kids additionally joined the celebrations.
The bride and groom stayed on the Aman Venice resort on the Grand Canal, the place Bezos posed for images and Sanchez Bezos blew kisses to the press.
“The planet is burning however don’t fear, right here’s the checklist of the 27 clothes of Lauren Sánchez,” learn one protest slogan, a reference to the bride’s reported wedding ceremony weekend wardrobe. It featured a mermaid-lined wedding ceremony robe by Dolce & Gabbana and different Dolce Vita-inspired appears by Italian designers, together with Schiaparelli and Bottega Veneta.
The town administration has strongly defended the nuptials as in step with Venice’s custom as an open metropolis that has welcomed popes, emperors and peculiar guests alike for hundreds of years.
