Residents of Coronado, disappointed to learn a gay couple was heckled on their wedding day, came together to re-create the special day and “make it right.”
Gary Jackson and Oscar De Las Salas re-read their vows in peace Saturday nearly two months after their first wedding ceremony along the water was interrupted by someone yelling gay slurs.
“I hear [the heckling] and then he grabs me by the hand and said it’s alright we're ok,” De Las Salas recalls.
Jackson said for him, the moment cast a cloud over the whole day.
“The ceremony was over, taking photos all we could think of was that guy and those condos where that person was staying,” Jackson said.
When a group of Coronado women who call themselves “The Island Ladies” found out about their story, they decided to do something about it.
“I felt like that was an inaccurate reflection of Coronado. It's a humanity issue and I would do that for anybody treated unfairly in Coronado,” said Alissa Kerr.
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Members of the exclusive beach community hosted a “do-over” wedding Saturday with 300 guests and no interruptions.
They even set up a Facebook page as vendors and community leaders pitched in to re-do their special day. To show Oscar and Gary that love is more powerful than hate.
It went off without a hitch. Oscar De Las Salas and Gary Jackson got married all over again.
De Las Salas said they were grateful for the outpouring of love.
“What we're experiencing today is the biggest expression of love someone can have, the biggest expression of a community gathering themselves together to make it right," he said.
Coronado Police say they're still investigating whether the rant was actually a crime.
