Bezos arrives in Venice as local groups protest his forthcoming wedding
Multi-billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his bride-to-be Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice on Wednesday ahead of their star-studded weekend wedding, an event that has sparked protest by a wide assortment of activist groups. Bezos waved from a water taxi as he and Sanchez arrived at the dock of the Aman Hotel, a five-star hotel on the Grand Canal, with two security boats in tow.
The event has drawn protests by groups who view it as a sign of the growing disparity between the haves and have-nots, while residents complain it exemplifies the way their needs are disregarded in the era of mass tourism to the historic city.
About a dozen Venetian organizations - including housing advocates, anti-cruise ship campaigners and university groups - have united to protest the multi-day event under the banner "No Space for Bezos," a play on words also referring to the bride's recent space flight.They have staged small-scale protests, unfurling anti-Bezos banners on iconic Venetian sites. They were joined on Monday by Greenpeace to unfurl a giant banner in St. Mark's Square protesting purported tax breaks for billionaires.
There has been no comment from Bezos' representatives on the protests.
The local activists had planned a more organised protest for Saturday, aiming to obstruct access to canals with boats to prevent guests from reaching a wedding venue.
They modified the protest to a march from the train station after claiming a victory, asserting that their pressure forced organisers to change the venue to the Arsenale, a more easily secured site beyond Venice's congested centre.
"It will be a strong, decisive protest, but peaceful,'' said Federica Toninello, an activist with the Social Housing Assembly network.
"We want it to be like a party, with music, to make clear what we want our Venice to look like."
Among the 200 guests confirmed to be attending the wedding are Mick Jagger, Ivanka Trump, Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio.
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