Jeff Bezos Wedding Protestors Throw Dummy Into Canal
I'm sure you're aware of all the controversy surrounding the Bezos wedding.
If you're not in the loop, billionaire* Jeff Bezos is expected to marry his longtime partner Lauren Sánchez today in a lavish ceremony in Venice, Italy.
Numerous celebrity guests are in attendance, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Kim Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey, and Orlando Bloom, to name but a few. According to multiple outlets, many of these attendees rocked up to Venice in their private jets.
In the run-up to the wedding, numerous residents in Venice have protested the multimillion-dollar affair, namely due to the fact that overtourism and climate change have caused the city to slowly start sinking. Things started out with numerous people holding up signs that read things like 'No Space for Bezos' and 'If You Can Rent Venice For Your Wedding, You Can Pay More Tax.'
However, things reached a new level on Wednesday, June 25, with protestors throwing a life-sized Jeff Bezos dummy into the Venice Grand Canal.
The dummy was dressed in an Amazon worker's jumpsuit and pointedly clutched an Amazon box while holding fistfuls of cash.
Reacting to photos of the dummy online, one person wrote, 'The Venetians have taken these protests to an art form. Absolutely sensational stuff, great work.'
Elsewhere, fans were left cringing as they reacted to photos of Lauren seemingly waving out to a crowd of protestors as she hopped onto a boat with Jeff.
Let me know what you think in the comments.
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Yahoo
40 minutes ago
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Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sánchez officially tie the knot in high-profile Venice wedding
Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez, a journalist, author and helicopter pilot, are officially married. Sánchez shared an update on Instagram with a photo of the the couple in their wedding attire from their star-studded wedding in Venice, Italy. Ahead of the wedding, the couple and some of these celebrity guests were photographed on Friday, leaving luxury hotels in Venice for their black-tie wedding ceremony. Bezos and Sánchez, who reportedly dated for about five years before they got engaged in 2023, were joined by family and friends for the multi-day affair. Here's what to know about the high-profile nuptials. Leading up to the wedding, information about the exact dates of Bezos and Sánchez's wedding were not been made public but the couple hosted a pre-wedding party Thursday. Sánchez shared a photo on Instagram updating followers that she and Bezos are officially married. The photo showed Sánchez and Bezos smiling as they walked up the aisle surrounded by their guests. Sánchez appears in the photo wearing a stunning white lace mermaid gown. Ahead of their big day, the couple was photographed on Thursday sharing a kiss while on their way to an evening reception, held at the gardens of the Madonna dell'Orto Church. The couple said "I do" in the capital of the Veneto region, although specific venues are not public knowledge. According to People, the island of San Giorgio Maggiore is expected to be the scene of the main event -- a black-tie ceremony. Workers were seen assembling tents and police patrolled the area, with extra police boats surrounding San Giorgio Maggiore. Among the big names on the approximately 200-person guest list for the Bezos-Sánchez wedding are potential celebrity guests including Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner, Khloé Kardashian, Kim Kardashian, Ellie Goulding and Ivanka Trump, who were all photographed leaving Venice hotels on Friday. Tom Brady, Usher and Orlando Bloom were also photographed stepping out in suits for the evening. Sánchez and Bezos, who Forbes estimates is worth $215 billion, are reportedly relying on about 80% of local Venetian vendors and organizations for their big day, according to the AP, including pastry-maker Rosa Salva, which has been in business for over 140 years, and glassware firm Laguna B, known for its Murano glasswork. ABC News exclusively obtained a portion of Bezos and Sánchez's wedding invitation, which was sent to guests in May. In it, the invitation asks guests to forgo gifts for the billionaire couple and instead lists three Venetian charities that Bezos and Sánchez will donate to on the behalf of guests. The wedding has drawn protests, dubbed "No Space for Bezos," among some local residents and organizations like Greenpeace, who are speaking out against over-tourism, disruption to everyday life and more. One Greenpeace banner, unfurled at Venice's St. Mark's Square, read, "If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax." Venice locals protest Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' wedding in Italy "We think that one big billionaire can't rent a city for his pleasure," a protester named Simona Abbate told Reuters. Despite protests, the mayor of Venice has welcomed the high-profile wedding, saying the city is "very proud" to host Bezos, Sánchez and their guests. The couple's wedding planners, Lanza and Baucina, the same global events company behind George Clooney and Amal Clooney's 2014 Venice nuptials, added in a statement to ABC News, "From the outset, instructions from our client and our own guiding principles were abundantly clear: the minimizing of any disruption to the city, the respect for its residents and institutions and the overwhelming employment of locals in the crafting of the events." Simone Venturini, the deputy mayor of Venice, told ABC News that the city didn't have to compete to host the celebrity-studded wedding celebration. "No, we play in another league, so people compete to get married in Venice," Venturini said. A man named John, who works in tourism in Venice, also told ABC News that business has picked up amid the wedding festivities. "The work in the city is at a high level in this moment and everybody is excited or anxious for the event," he said. Both Bezos and Sánchez have been in past relationships and were married to other people previously. Bezos made headlines in January 2019 after revealing that he and his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott were divorcing after 25 years of marriage. The former couple share four children. Sánchez was previously married to talent agent and businessman Patrick Whitesell for 14 years. Both Sánchez and Whitesell filed for divorce in April 2019, as reported by the AP. They share two children. Sánchez is also mom to model Nikko Gonzalez, her eldest son from a previous relationship with former NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez.
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At the Bezos-Sánchez Wedding, ‘Unapologetic Glamour' Ruled
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New York Times
an hour ago
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The Merchant in Venice: Jeff Bezos' Italian Wedding
Shakespeare would have approved. A former merchant-turned-emperor of global logistics — Jeff Bezos — married Lauren Sánchez in a city that has, for centuries, been known for commerce and its theatrical atmosphere. While the city still had its fair share of regular tourists this week, the atmosphere along the canals subtly shifted. Boats came and went silently. Workers appeared and disappeared behind gates. Questions to security were answered with intimidating stares. Throughout the week, celebrity arrivals and megayachts dotted the Dal Borgol, the director of Hotel Serenissima, found himself combating rumors that Mr. Bezos had shut the city down. 'He reserved all private spaces and paid for them — just as anyone else could have done,' Mr. Dal Borgol said. Mr. Bezos and Ms. Sánchez have made only occasional public appearances, passing through the black-and-white-striped canopy outside the Aman Hotel with smiles and a few waves. Tourists and paparazzi alike tried to catch glimpses, enduring the hot summer temperatures. The only objects making it through the gates at the hotel appeared to be packages from — where else? — Amazon. Cagdas Halicilar, a former electrician-turned-Bezos-impersonator from Germany, stood on a dock near the Aman, waving at the passing boats. He hoped to deliver an expensive bottle of whiskey as a wedding gift, but was unable to breach the security bubble. 'It's a dream to meet him and shake his hand,' Mr. Halicilar said. 'I do this as a hobby — it's not about money. It's not even about attention. It just happens, totally automatically.' There were signs of protest: Anti-Bezos stickers appeared in various corners of the city, but they were quickly removed, leaving behind amusing accidental collages. Marco Giolo, a 30-year-old farmer from Venice, climbed a flagpole in St. Marks Square to hang a banner proclaiming, 'The 1 percent ruins the world.' Other locals were excited. Kristina Kireeva, 33, was hoping for a celebrity sighting. 'I heard Kim Kardashian landed at the airport, and I really want to see her,' she said. Arian Nababbi Ardaakani, 15, stood outside the Aman Hotel hoping to get his Amazon package signed by Mr. Bezos. Antonio Rosa Salva, the sixth-generation owner of a Venetian patisserie, was one of the local artisans who got a chance to contribute directly to the wedding, providing pastries for gift boxes made for guests. 'We're very happy and proud,' he said. 'Being involved in this initiative felt like a real recognition.' The marriage of Mr. Bezos and Ms. Sánchez was just the latest in a city and country known for hosting the lavish weddings of celebrities, locals and tourists alike. Anyone who missed out on the main event could catch a glimpse of another wedding — they would just have to look around a corner.
