"No Space For Bezos": Why Venice Locals Are Against The Billionaire's Wedding
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancee Lauren Sanchez, former TV journalist, are set to get married. The details of the nuptials are top secret with even the date of the wedding not public yet but the festivities are scheduled for 24-26th June.
However, there is a lot of anger among locals as they fear the world heritage site will suffer from the effects of excessive tourism.
Activists have ramped up their "No space for Bezos" campaign after Luigi Brugnaro, Venice's millionaire mayor, confirmed in March that the couple would be getting married in the city.
The locals erected a banner reading "No Bezos" on the bell tower of San Giorgio basilica on the Venetian island of San Giorgio, where the couple is rumoured to be exchanging vows.
According to a report by the NYT, Federica Toninello, a protest organiser, said that one of the venues could be The Misericordia, a former charity turned events hall. But she said that Bezos will never get to the venue. "Bezos will never get to the Misericordia," she said, adding, "We will line the streets with our bodies, block the canals with lifesavers, dinghies and our boats."
Na Haby Stella Faye, another protester, said, "We have a chance to disrupt a ten million dollar wedding - let's do it."
Despite very little information about the wedding, the press has been filled with hearsay about guests, hotel rooms, the bride's dress and more.
"This wedding is causing much friction, especially because it is happening at a time when Venice, already invaded by uncontrolled tourism, is completely worn out," said Giovanni Andrea Martini, a councillor for the opposition, per a report by the Guardian.
Brugnaro has called the anti-Bezos campaigners "shameful" and has informed locals that the wedding will not cause any inconvenience.
"Only 200 guests will have been invited and therefore it will be easy for Venice to accommodate such an event, without any disruption whatsoever to the city, its residents and visitors," the Municipality of Venice said, according to Today.com.
The opposition member, Giovanni Andrea Martini, said that Brugnaro's claims are "false". He slammed the "extreme case of the Disneyfication of Venice," and said the wedding "won't bring any benefit to ordinary Venetians. It is just going to cause inconvenience."
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