The glamour of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez’s $55 million wedding in Venice was met with sharp resistance the next day, as hundreds of protesters assembled at a local train station, marching with a defiant message for the newlyweds: they weren’t welcome.
Chanting in Italian, the crowd voiced their disapproval with cries of “Bezos, f**k off” and “Out of our lagoon!”
Among the demonstrators, a bearded man carried a Shrek-themed sign echoing the same sentiment.
The placard, featuring the words “Get Out of Our Lagoon” with Shrek ears replacing the “a,” included a Spotify link to Smash Mouth’s “All Star,” the theme song from the animated classic.
One woman, speaking passionately into a microphone near the station, connected Bezos to global conflict.
“Bezos goes hand-in-hand with (US President Donald) Trump, who’s fueling more money in war,” she said. “We are for peace.”
Austrian protester Hans Peter Martin criticized Bezos’ presence in the historic city. “(Bezos) has such a lot of power,” Martin told CNN. “And now he’s abusing this city as a place to show off. So, he’s not welcome here.”
While the weekend wedding may have sparked controversy, Venice’s Ministry of Tourism noted that it could bring in nearly 68% of the city’s typical annual tourism revenue.
Bezos and Sanchez also reportedly donated 1 million euros each to three local cultural institutions—totaling 3 million euros.
But for 22-year-old Venetian Sofia D’Amato, the gesture rang hollow. “We are not jealous of the fact that he earns so much money, that he is one of the most powerful men in the world,” she told CNN. “We are jealous when his wealth hits us in the face.”
D’Amato added, “They say that Jeff Bezos donated money to Venice. It was donated after our dissent. Such a sum for a magnate is paltry.”
Other demonstrators highlighted the disconnect between the billionaire’s celebration and the working conditions many face at Amazon.
“We can barely pay the rent,” said one woman who identified herself as an Amazon employee. “Many of us come from far away to reach the warehouse. We make do … we don’t see these millions.”
As the group marched toward the Ponte delle Guglie, they joined in a historic protest chant: “The people united will never be defeated.”
Signs throughout the crowd mocked the couple’s extravagance—one reading, “Money Can’t Buy Style,” while others repurposed Amazon boxes with phrases like “Rejected” and “No Space for Bezos.”
The sea of flags at the protest was diverse: Palestinian banners, pride flags, anti-fascist symbols, and Venice’s own red standard flew above the heads of demonstrators.
Some brandished a modified version of the city’s golden lion emblem, this time with a sword and a black balaclava.
Venetian authorities, however, were unimpressed by the protest. In a strongly worded press release, they called the demonstration “ridiculous” and “grotesque.”
“Contesting a wedding (any wedding) is already ridiculous in itself. But here we have exceeded all limits of common sense,” city officials wrote on Saturday. “We have descended into the folklore of ‘No to everything.’”