Erika Labrie’s sexual orientation has been frowned upon and met with mockery. She is an Objectum Sexual (OS) which means she forms romantic attractions and relationships to inanimate objects.
In 2007, Erika changed her surname to Eiffel after she held a commitment ceremony to her partner, the French tower.
She previously told the New Zealand Herald: “Everyone has a type they are drawn to. That includes OS people.”
Erika added: “I find my type is an object that’s misunderstood by the world.
“The Eiffel Tower is surrounded by millions of tourists who are in love with each other, not with her.”
The documentary Married to the Eiffel Tower was released a year after the wedding and circulated the internet.
But the OS community reportedly thought that people were interested in Erika’s story for the wrong reasons.
She said: “This documentary raised misconceptions that OS people were inclined towards objects for the sake of control due to factors such as abuse and mental illness.
“Numbers suggest that most have no more issues than a normal cross-section of society.”
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But she previously revealed she had entered something new which she described as “loving”.
She said: “I have accepted defeat. However Eiffel will always have a place in my heart.
“That is something the media cannot carve out of my chest. Though at times it feels as if they have tried.”
Erika also spoke about the similarities of OS to having nostalgia over a certain object.
She said: “I always say that everyone is closet OS but they simply don’t know it yet.
“These sentimental relationships that people have with some objects are very similar to how we feel.
“However, most don’t have the instinct to develop a deeper connection.”
Erika also shut down any claims that her OS is caused by a lack of relationships with other people.
She said: “I have always maintained good friendships with people and been very social but I have never felt drawn towards any romantic relationship.
“Despite early attempts to date due to the pressure to conform, it never worked. It felt very alien to me.”