A Fairytale Wedding or Exploitation of Power?

On a late June evening, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez, tied the knot in Venice, as the Grand canal glistened with the reflections of yachts, chandeliers, bejewelled gowns and paparazzi flashes, reportedly spending around $50 million. While the world watched the glitz and glamour, another Venice stirred, the kind that marched, protested and held up signs which said “No Space for Bezos” which led to a much bigger question: Was it right to host such a lavish wedding in a city which is quite literally drowning.

Across a 3-day spectacle, hosted at iconic locations like San Giorgio Maggiore and the Venetian Arsenal, the festivities included a Gatsby-themed party, a foam party, a pajama-themed brunch and a masquerade ball. Lauren Sanchez reportedly wore over 27 designer outfits. Many A-list celebrities jetted in for the three days including Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio and the Kardashians.

While the Bezos’ wedding took over Venice’s most exclusive spaces, hundreds of locals took to the streets and canals, in protest. With placards reading “No Space for Bezos!” and “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax!” and floating a mannequin Bezos on a giant Amazon box stuffed with fake money, protesters made their message unmistakably clear. Their message wasn’t anti-love; it was anti-exploitation. Venice, which is long plagued by over-tourism and gentrification, was being treated like a billionaire’s playground. For locals, it felt like the city was slipping out of their hands.

As the guests arrived by yachts and private jets, the CO2 emissions started rising dramatically. Private jets emit up to 14 times more CO2 per person than commercial flights. Approximately 90 private jets landed in Venice for the wedding, add the yachts, lighting rigs and fireworks, and the carbon footprint increased past 1000 metric tons of CO2 in just 3-days. All of this in a city already facing problems with rising sea-levels, streets flooding and residents fighting to hold on to their homes.

Although Venice’s city officials defended the event with Mayor Luigi Brugnaro calling it a “moment of pride” and claimed the wedding brought millions in revenue to local businesses, from Murano glassmakers to pastry shops, many Venetians argued that while a few vendors prospered, the city’s dignity was being rented out. As one protester put it, “We are not a theme park. We are a home.” To them, the wedding wasn’t about tourism, it was about losing their city piece by piece to wealth and power.

The Bezos’ opulent wedding in Venice wasn’t just an extravagant celebration, it became a glaring example of the world’s growing disparities. While the billionaires toasted on gondolas and yachts, the city itself sat on the edge of a climate catastrophe, with rising sea levels threatening its very foundations. It’s a painful contrast: the rich celebrate in luxury while those in the working class, including many venetians, face the harshest consequences. Beyond the environmental impact lies the unsettling commodification of culture; Venice, a living city with real people, reduced to a picturesque backdrop “rented” like a movie set. The wedding intensified a growing rift between the locals and global high society, as culture and home are being reduced to luxury backdrops.

Once the final party ended and the jets left, Venice stood as it always has, vulnerable to time, tourism and tide. While the world gushed over dresses and décor, the locals stood knee deep in water and injustice. Love is beautiful. But when it’s draped in privilege and is tone deaf, perhaps its time we asked: what exactly are we celebrating?