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By Giulia Carbonaro
Senior Reporter
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A group of residents in the Italian city of Venice has vowed to "block the canals" to stop Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding from taking place in the city later this month, as the billionaire's planned luxurious ceremony sparks fury among locals already fighting against overtourism.
A member of a local protest group told Newsweek that the billionaire is "not welcome in Venice."
Locals' Anger Reaches Boiling Point
"La Serenissima," as the Italians call Venice—which roughly translates to "the most serene"—is far from a tranquil place these days. For years, locals have been fighting to keep their city livable in the face of growing tourism, advocating in favor of banning cruise ships reaching the city's central area (a measure granted by the Italian government in 2021) and keeping Venetians housed in those same properties that others would like to turn into short-term rentals.
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That their beloved city is now going to be fenced off for the sake of one of the richest men in the world feels to many locals like adding insult to injury. On Thursday, a group of locals from the newly formed committee "No Space for Bezos" climbed atop the city's iconic bell tower, which dominates Venice's main square, to unleash a massive sign where Bezos' name was struck through.
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The city's mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, who together with Veneto's Regional President Luca Zaia, has greenlit the wedding, condemned the protest as "shameful," warning that Bezos might change his mind and decide to hold his wedding somewhere else if he should feel unwelcome in Venice.
That is exactly what some locals are hoping for. "To Brugnaro we say, we are not the ones ruining Venice, it is people like him. Reducing it to a stage for billionaires, emptying it of residents…closing his eyes to—and often denying—the climate and social crisis unfolding in the lagoon," the group wrote on Facebook.
For the protesters, Venice needs "much more" than "billionaires on a catwalk," they said. "Public spaces, affordable housing, decent work, environmental justice."
A Wedding for the Ages
Bezos' Venice wedding to the former television journalist Sanchez is planned for an unconfirmed date between June 24 and 28, with the exact day having been kept secret for security reasons. Parts of the city would be closed to the public—including residents—for the ceremony, causing locals to plan their movements around it.
According to local reports, the wedding has already led to a surge in luxury hotel bookings in the city and several water taxi services have already been booked to transport the roughly 250 wedding guests, which will include the likes of Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey. It is unclear whether U.S. President Donald Trump will attend the event.
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Venice's mayor said that the wedding would be an opportunity for the city to showcase its beauty to the world and is nothing that it cannot handle, having already hosted two G7 meetings. According to Zaia, Bezos' wedding will bring "visibility and wealth to the city."
Answering to a request for comment from Newsweek, a spokesperson for Brugnaro shared a statement he made to The Associated Press: "We are very proud. I don't know if I will have the time, or if he [Jeff Bezos] will have it, but it is a honor that they chose Venice. Venice would prove itself to be, once again, a world-worthy stage."
But a series of leaflets that have appeared around the city over the past week read: "Venice is not for sale, nor for rent."
'We'll Jump in the Canals' To Stop It
On Friday, more than 200 people took part in a meeting by the iconic Rialto Bridge organized by the No Space for Bezos group, where they decided to hold three days of protests between June 26 and 28.
"Maybe even more," Marta Sottoriva of No Space for Bezos told Newsweek, teasing some "surprise" actions on top of the planned protests that she is not willing to reveal just yet.
Sottoriva said that residents' support for their protest goes far beyond the numbers that attended the meetup, as many told them that they second their actions though they were not free to be there in person on Friday. She said protesters are ready to jump in the canals to stop the wedding from taking place if needs be.
"Life is getting increasingly difficult in Venice," Sottoriva said. "Of course, part of the city is in favor [of the wedding]. It's the part that has something to gain from it, but we're talking about a small percentage. Luxury hotel owners, taxi drivers, catering agencies," she said.
These kinds of big events "block the city" for residents, they "militarize" it, Sottoriva said, "and we're talking of the entire city center, not just a little part. We are expecting five yachts in the historic center," she added.
"But there's a feeling spreading among citizens, we don't believe that these big events bring money to the city anymore. It's linked to an economy that is becoming increasingly precarious, tied to tourism," Sottoriva said.
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"We won't collect the crumbs falling from the tables of those who continue to enrich themselves stomping over people's rights and freedoms, accumulating more and more wealth in their hands," the group No Space for Bezos wrote on Facebook after the protest. "Oligarchs are not welcome in Venice."
Tommaso Cacciari, an activist who long advocated against cruise ships anchoring in the city and is now the spokesperson for No Space for Bezos, told a local news station that Zaia was favoring foreign billionaires with no ties to the city or the region instead of local workers.
'Not Just Any Groom'
But the local community is conflicted about the wedding. While many consider it an insult to the city's dignity, others think it should just be about "a man and a woman wanting to get married in the most romantic city in the world," as one local wrote on Facebook.
"I got nothing against the wedding," another responded. "But we aren't talking about just any groom. We're talking about one who has heavily invested in [Donald] Trump, whose administration is clearly hostile toward us," he added, referring to the Trump administration's tariff policies, which has targeted Italy and the European Union as well.
"Jeff Bezos is not a superstar, not a Hollywood actor, not a sports champion," Sottoriva said. "He's the third-richest man in the world, who's built his wealth over exploiting workers and resources," she said.
"He's the same person who stood next to Trump during his inauguration ceremony, together with many other oligarchs he hasn't hesitated to change his company's entire branding to get onboard with this totalitarian turn," she added. "It's a protest against Bezos, he's not welcome in Venice."
Sottoriva told Newsweek that her group is convinced that the majority of Venice residents is on their side. Despite the unfolding controversy and the growing tensions with part of the local community, Bezos' wedding in the city has been confirmed.
Newsweek contacted the office of the president of the Veneto region Luca Zaia and Bezos' Amazon team for comment by email on Monday morning. No Space for Bezos was contacted via social media.
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