A gay businessman has apologized for
hosting an event for Texas Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican candidate
for the White House.
Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass, a
former couple turned business partners, hosted Cruz and his wife,
Heidi, at their Manhattan apartment last week. According to The
New York Times, roughly a dozen people attended the dinner and
“fireside chat.”
A Facebook page condemning the
businessmen for hosting Cruz and calling for a boycott of Reisner's
properties – the OUT NYT hotel, known for holding wedding
ceremonies for gay couples, and Fire Island Pines holdings –
received more than 8,200 “likes” as of Sunday.
“I am shaken to my bones by the
e-mails, texts, postings and phone calls of the past few days. I
made a terrible mistake,” Reisner wrote on Facebook.
Cruz, a vocal opponent of marriage
equality, last week called on Christians to
“take a stand” against same-sex marriage through prayer as
the Supreme Court looks at the issue.
“I was ignorant, naive and much too
quick in accepting a request to co-host a dinner with Cruz at my home
without taking the time to completely understand all of his positions
on gay rights,” Reisner said.
“I've spent the past 24 hours
reviewing videos of Cruz' statements on gay marriage and I am shocked
and angry,” he added. “I sincerely apologize for hurting the gay
community and so many of our friends, family, allies, customers and
employees. I will try my best to make up for my poor judgement.
Again, I am deeply sorry.”
A group dedicated to raising AIDS
awareness canceled an event at the OUT NYC.
Tom Viola, executive director of Broadway Cares / Equity Fights
AIDS, wrote
on Facebook: “I have never considered that all of our many
supporters would ever vote monolithically. But when any politician
holds so many of us in contempt … we cannot be misunderstood as
standing with him/her.”