After Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez tied the knot in Venice on Friday, a few hundred protesters gathered Saturday at a city train station for a march, united with one message for the Amazon billionaire and his bride: go away. <\/p>\n
\u201cBezos, f**k off,\u201d they chanted in Italian. \u201cOut of our lagoon!\u201d <\/p>\n
One bearded man toted a Shrek-themed placard with the same message: \u201cGet Out of Our Lagoon,\u201d the \u201ca\u201d in lagoon sprouting Shrek ears, with a Spotify link below for the theme song from the first movie in the series, Smash Mouth\u2019s \u201cAll Star.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cBezos goes hand-in-hand with (US President Donald) Trump, who\u2019s fueling more money in war,\u201d one woman bellowed into a microphone by the station. \u201cWe are for peace.\u201d <\/p>\n
Sofia D\u2019Amato, a 22-year-old Venetian, emphasized that the protests weren\u2019t about envy for Bezos\u2019 wealth or power. <\/p>\n
Venice\u2019s Ministry of Tourism says the three-day wedding, which reportedly cost $55 million, could provide a boost of almost 68% of the city\u2019s annual tourism turnover. On top of that, Sanchez and Bezos gave 1 million euros each to three Venetian cultural institutions, according to Reuters; a total of 3 million euros worth of donations. <\/p>\n
Their philanthropy left D\u2019Amato unimpressed. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey say that Jeff Bezos donated money to Venice,\u201d D\u2019Amato said. \u201cIt was donated after our dissent. Such a sum for a magnate is paltry.\u201d <\/p>\n
Protesters drew a stark contrast between the decadence of Bezos and Sanchez\u2019s wedding the day before and the harsh realities of working at the billionaire\u2019s company. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe can barely pay the rent,\u201d one woman, who identified herself as an Amazon worker, told a crowd of demonstrators. \u201cMany of us come from far away to reach the warehouse. We make do \u2026 we don\u2019t see these millions.\u201d <\/p>\n
Some protesters joined in an old leftist chant as the demonstration moved toward the Ponte delle Guglie: \u201cThe people united will never be defeated.\u201d <\/p>\n
At least one protester took aim at the couple\u2019s fashion sense with a sign declaring that \u201cMoney Can\u2019t Buy Style.\u201d <\/p>\n
Many held aloft Amazon boxes with various messages inscribed: \u201cRejected,\u201d \u201cNo Space for Bezos.\u201d <\/p>\n
Multiple flags were visible among the protesters: Palestinian flags, pride flags, anti-fascist flags and Venice\u2019s fimbriated red standard were among the popular choices. A few individuals waved a modified version, the sword-bearing golden lion at its hoist wearing a black balaclava. <\/p>\n
Venice city officials were unamused by the protesters, denouncing them in a press release as \u201cridiculous\u201d and \u201cgrotesque.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cContesting a wedding (any wedding) is already ridiculous in itself. But here we have exceeded all limits of common sense,\u201d read a municipal statement released Saturday. \u201cWe have descended into the folklore of \u2018No to everything.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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