A large crowd of protesters demonstrated outside The Out NYC Hotel on 42nd Street this evening, angry at the intimate reception its owners, Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass, held at their home last Wednesday for anti-gay conservative and presidential hopeful Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX).

The protesters yelled “shame” and read off a list of other properties included in a boycott, including those recently purchased by Reisner in the business district of the gay resort Fire Island Pines.

The protest was recorded on a series of Vines by DNAinfo reporter Danielle Tcholakian.

Watch all the Vines, AFTER THE JUMP…

After initially defending the reception, Reisner and Weiderpass apologized on Facebook.

Said Reisner, feeling the backlash: “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.”

Added Weiderpass: “I share in Ian’s remorse. I, too, lay humbled with what has happened in the last week. I made a terrible mistake.”

Since the reception, several gay organizations and individuals have pulled out of events scheduled at the Out NYC hotel.

In a statement following the reception, Cruz issued a statement apparently meant to appease conservatives which said, “The purpose of the meeting and the primary topics of conversation were national security, foreign policy, and America’s commitment to standing with Israel. On the subject of marriage, when asked, I stated directly and unambiguously what everyone in the room already knew, that I oppose gay marriage and I support traditional marriage.”

Cruz continued his anti-gay crusade at an event in Iowa over the weekend, where he urged Republicans to “fall to our knees in prayer” that the Supreme Court does not rule for marriage equality.