Tag: Ian Reisner

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NYC Gay Hoteliers Hold Fund-Raiser For Another Anti-Gay Senator

Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson and hotelier Ian Reisner

The gay hoteliers who raised money for anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz are at it again, only this time Ian Reisner held a NYC event for anti-gay Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson.

Via GayCityNews:

A host and guests at a fundraiser held by embattled real estate developers Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass at their Central Park South penthouse donated at least $10,600 to Republican Ron Johnson, a right-wing US senator from Wisconsin who faces a 2016 challenge from Democrat Russ Feingold.

Reisner, who is gay, gave Johnson $2,700, the maximum allowed under federal election law. Reisner, who has otherwise largely supported Democrats, gave $2,700 to Hillary Clinton on June 15.

The hosts and the guests were supporting Johnson because of the senator’s support for Israel and his views on the Middle East, according to the press release, which described those in attendance as “a bipartisan group of Jewish business leaders –– both committed Republicans and several traditionally aligned with Democrats.”

The Out NYC and Reisner’s properties in the Pines on Fire Island came under boycott after the New York Times reported that he held an April 20 fundraiser for Republican Ted Cruz, a Texas senator and candidate for the Republican nomination for president. (This reporter has supported the boycott and played a role in organizing it.) The community objected to Reisner and Weiderpass taking money from their LGBT customers and giving it to anti-LGBT right-wingers.

After it was revealed that Reisner donated the personal maximum of $2,700 to Cruz after the April meeting (after previously saying “no funds were raised” at the dinner meeting), Reisner requested and received a refund from the Cruz campaign.

The Human Rights Campaign gives Johnson a zero ranking out of a possible 100 in the 113th Congress and a 15 out of a possible 100 in the 112th Congress. Johnson opposes same-sex marriage and voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act which would bar workplace discrimination.

Russ Feingold, Johnson’s opponent, who served 18 years in the U.S. Senate, had rankings from HRC in the high 80s/low 90s during his final six years in office.

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Ian Reisner & Mati Weiderpass Hit With Discrimination Lawsuit By Hotel Employees

More bad news for openly gay New York City hoteliers Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass as the Advocate reports they are being sued by former employees of their NYC hotel – The Out NYC.

The suit, alleging discrimination and withheld pay, is on behalf of specific plaintiffs and “all others similarly-situated.”

The allegations by James Stress, Paul Shreve, Donald Shorter, and Jonathan Taylor are twofold. All four employees named in the suit claim KTCHN and XL failed to pay for overtime work and withheld part of their tips, resulting in violations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act as well as New York City and state law. Shorter and Stress also allege discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity — by establishments that are owned by and cater to LGBT people.

Reisner and Weiderpass have been under a media blitz and boycott by many in the LGBT community due to hosting a “fireside chat” with virulently anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz, currently running for the GOP nod for president in 2016.

Most recently, it came to light that although both men told the press on more than one occasion that the “chat” was NOT a fundraiser and “no checks were given,” it seems Reisner actually did write a “max-check” of $2,700 to the Cruz campaign around the time of the event. He later went back to the campaign asking that his check be refunded.

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Gay Hotelier Ian Reisner Lied Regarding Making Campaign Contribution To Sen. Ted Cruz

Quisling NYC businessman Ian Reisner

Boys, boys, boys. You’ve GOT to get your act together and your stories straight.

For weeks gay NYC hoteliers Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass have been in trouble with the NYC LGBT community because they held a “fireside chat” with virulently anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz last month.

Initially, the two men were “surprised” by the uproar saying they didn’t really understand the degree to which Cruz opposes LGBT rights. And they stressed that the evening was not a fundraiser of any kind.

“There were no checks given, it was nothing like that,” Reisner told New York magazine.

Next, came the community boycott of their businesses including the niche hotel The Out NYC, followed by a full-on “apology tour” stressing that they will work hard to regain the gays’ trust.

That lasted a couple of days until Weiderpass published an attack on the LGBT community including one passage calling the gays “cheap.” Now there’s damage control for you.

“It is amazing that my businesses are being boycotted by some because I hosted a discussion with an elected official. Not a fundraiser. Not an endorsement. A dialogue,” wrote Weiderpass in an op-ed for The New York Observer. “Despite media reports to the contrary, I did not organize the Cruz dinner, but did embrace the opportunity—again, in a non-fundraising setting—to discuss a number of important issues, including support for Israel and support for gay rights.”

Well, the proverbial “other shoe” dropped today as the New York Times reports that Reisner actually DID write a check to Cruz’s campaign – for the maximum amount of $2,700.

It was only AFTER the scandal escalated that Reisner apparently asked for his check back – probably because the donation would should up on Mr. Cruz’s campaign finance filing when it becomes public in July.

“In the interest of transparency, I gave Senator Cruz a $2,700 check to show my support for his work on behalf of Israel,” Mr. Reisner said in a statement he provided after The Times learned of the donation from two people with direct knowledge of it. “When I realized his donation could be misconstrued as supporting his anti-gay marriage agenda, I asked for the money back. Senator Cruz’s office gave the money back, and I have no intention of giving any money to any politicians who aren’t in support of L.G.B.T. issues.”

Bolding is mine.

Umm, yes Mr. Reisner, contributing to a politician’s campaign is generally seen as supporting their positions. Unless you inherited all your money, there’s no way you could be a successful businessman and not understand such rudimentary concepts.

It just keeps getting worse for these guys.

Interestingly, when asked about the $2,700 check, Reisner’s buddy Weiderpass seemed “surprised” to learn about the donation as he attended an event last night at New York’s Marriott Marquis hotel.

And guess who also just happened to attend last night’s event?

Yes – Sen. Ted Cruz.

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Armistead Maupin Weighs In On Gay Hoteliers Debacle

Writing on his Facebook page today, legendary gay author Armistead Maupin had this to say about the ongoing scandal/boycott of NYC gay hoteliers Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass:

“I’m the only gay man I know who has never been to Fire Island. I have not made a point of staying away — its charms are legendary, of course — but the occasion has simply never presented itself.

“Now, it’s quite likely that I will remain forever virginal in that regard. Or at least until these guys are no longer collecting money at the dock. When I coined the term “A-gay” forty years ago, these were just the sort of creeps I had in mind. It was never intended as something to aspire to.”

The post was in response to a less than flattering profile in the New York Times about the two men and the scandal surrounding them.

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Hotel Owner Ian Reisner Blames Lack Of Profit On “Cheap” and “Entitled” Gays

Talking to New York Magazine with his business partner, Matti Weiderpass, hotelier Ian Reisner had this to say about the LGBT community and the boycott aimed at his gay-centric hotel and night club The Out NYC since hosting a “fireside chat” with Sen. Ted Cruz:

“You know, it’s so ironic — I wanted to build kind of a community center in the gateway to Hell’s Kitchen, which in 2008–2009 was already a gay place and now it’s even gayer. Very close to Broadway. We decided there’d be so many different ways to give back to the community. We show gay artists there. For gay performers, we have let this cabaret club go on for three and a half years.

“And you don’t make money when you let drag queens in on Tuesday night and 30 people drink at $10 a drink and you have to pay five people to watch over the place. You don’t make money.

“My only point is, this has not been a profitable venture. Gays are cheap. They’re frugal; gays are frugal. Let me retract that … gays are entitled … Do you know how challenging it is to make a penny off a gay person? I’m gay, I don’t pay cover. I’m gay, where’s my comp drink? [Everyone laughs.] No, I’m being serious! The Out NYC has not shown a profit yet.”

Bolding is mine.

I’ll point out here that:

a. Reisner himself is gay.

b. Reisner has run the gamut of being defensive to being “shaken” to his bones to now being just plain icky over his hosting the virulently anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz in his home two weeks ago.

c. This is an excellent way to dig an even deeper hole…

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Gay Hotelier Ian Reisner Apologizes For Hosting Fund-Raiser forAnti-Gay Ted Cruz

New York City hotelier Ian Reisner posts to his Facebook page tonight:

“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.

“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.

“I’ve spent the past 24 hours reviewing videos of Cruz’ statements on gay marriage and I am shocked and angry. 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.”

This is in response to enormous LGBT outrage over hosting a “fireside chat” with virulently anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz in Reisner’s home a week ago.

I call absolute bullshit. Reisner and Weiderpass are multi-millionaires who makes informed decisions every day. As out businessmen catering to the LGBT community, no less. Bullshit.

The furor in the LGBT community has caused several cancellations at Reisner’s Manhattan hotel, The Out NYC.

UPDATE: Reisner’s fellow quisling has followed suit in begging forgiveness in light of cancellations at their hotel. In my opinion, it is inconceivable that a successful businessman who makes informed decisions every day did not know they were inviting a virulently anti-gay politician into their home for fundraising. 
See Mr. Weiderpass’ tag team Reisner’s mea culpa below:

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More Cancellations For The Out NYC After Owners Host Sen. Ted Cruz

More LGBT groups are cancelling their events at Ian Reisner’s The Out NYC Hotel after the hotelier hosted virulently anti-gay Sen. Ted Cruz in his home earlier this week.

The New York City Gay Men’s Chorus cancalled it’s Lily Garden fundraiser at the hotel that was originally scheduled for last night.

From the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus Facebook page:

We wish we could say this was a clear, easy decision. It wasn’t. We believe in nuanced, complex discussion, and we think that dialogue with your opposition will always lead to positive change in the world. We cannot say who is right and who is wrong, and we hope the debate will continue.

We can say, however, that we made the decision because we want to be 100% clear in our support for the LGBTQ community. NYCGMC has a 35-year history of campaigning for human rights through our music. Our mission must always come first.

We are sorry that we cannot spend the afternoon with our friends and supporters. Besides being an important fundraiser, The Lily Garden is a fantastic event due to the tireless effort of Matt Levison aka Lily Putian. We are grateful that Matt has volunteered to reschedule the event later in the year.

Additionally, HONEY – Urban Bear NYC’s official dance party – that was scheduled at XL Nightclub (located at The Out NYC) on May 15th has been put on hold until further notice.

Executive Producer Robert Valin of Urban Bear sends the news:

With talks of a protest as well as a boycott of the venue, and with others pulling out of their contracts, we have decided to put our dance party HONEY, scheduled at XL Nightclub on Friday, May 15th ON HOLD until further notice.

At this time, we believe this to be the best decision, as numerous members of our community and their families are employed by THE OUT and XL Nightclub, and an impending boycott could adversely affect their livelihoods. We want to do the right thing and believe that waiting until all the facts are in before making any final decisions is best. We welcome your thoughts as we consider alternate locations for the dance event.

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“Broadway Bares Solo Strips” Cancels Over Ian Reisner’s Ted Cruz “Fireside Chat”

Fallout for Ian Reisner after hosting a “fireside chat” with anti-gay 2016 GOP candidate Sen. Ted Cruz.

Broadway Cares has announced they are canceling Broadway Bares Solo Strips which was scheduled to be held at Reisner’s hotel The Out NYC on May 10th:

It is with regret that we have decided to cancel this year’s edition of the Broadway Bares Solo Strips fundraiser, which was scheduled for May 10 at the NYC club 42West. We cannot in good conscience hold an event at a venue whose owners have alienated our community, as reflected in an April 23 New York Times story and an April 24 follow-up post.

We do business with and accept fundraising support from a variety of people across a wide spectrum of political and religious affiliations. The rich diversity of our community makes what we do together so special. It is a rare instance where the actions of a donor negatively impacts us as an organization and potentially jeopardizes our relationship with others whose support is integral to our success. But when it does occur, in a way that’s blatantly against all we stand and work for, we can’t pretend it doesn’t come with consequences. Silence is not a neutral position. It is complicit.

This is not about partisan politics or punishment. This is about doing what’s right to ultimately ensure that our commitment to the men, women and children we serve cannot be questioned.

Ticket purchasers are being contacted by email. If you have questions about your Broadway Bares Solo Strips tickets, please contact Cat Domiano at domiano@broadwaycares.org.

That being said, the big event – Broadway Bares – will still be held on June 21st at Hammerstein Ballroom at 311 West 34th Street for two sensational shows at 9:30 pm and midnight. Get tickets.