DeErricka Green | Staff Writer
Robert Brown and Nathanael Gay are gutsy.
This past month, the couple walked down the aisle in Lexington, K.Y. undeniably in one of the “klassiest” wedding ceremonies of the year. They then decided to share this cherished moment with the world by posting a video on YouTube.
As word of the video spread, the Internet erupted with response.
It was a source of conversation on almost every social media site, and “Kappa” became a trending topic on Twitter after the public took notice that the men appeared to be members of the prestigious Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
The heartfelt video featured a collage of photos from the ceremony in front of family, friends and Gay’s Fraternity brothers, set to Jennifer Hudson’s “If This Isn’t Love.” The red and white themed ceremony (or crimson and crème as some would argue) was complete with white tuxes, an excess of roses, horse-drawn carriage, and a young man carrying a sign that read: “Here Come the Grooms.”
Despite this elegant celebration of love, all across social media, as well as radio stations and news sites, the words of congratulations and support have been drowned out by the deafening roar of disapproval, not only from the public, but also some members of Kappa Alpha Psi.
Comments such as “[Brown and Gay] are supposed to be brothers, you don’t marry your brother,” “It was a mistake to associate [Kappa Alpha Psi] with their personal lives,” and “This is a disgrace to the principles [Kappa Alpha Psi] was founded on,” extended across social media outlets, radio and blogs across the country.
Many of these negative comments stemmed from misinformation regarding Brown and Gay, as well as harsh personal opinion.
It was originally reported and further spread that both Brown and Gay are members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. However, this is not the case. Brown has confirmed, via Twitter that only his husband is affiliated with the Fraternity.
Other errors concerning the couple and the ceremony were corrected when Gay went on the nationally syndicated “Tom Joyner Morning Show” this past week in order to set the record straight.
Gay told Tom Joyner and the rest of the Tom Joyner Morning Show crew, “There was no affiliation whatsoever to Kappa in my wedding … this was not a Kappa wedding…our colors were not based off the Kappa colors like most of the articles mentioned.”
Gay insisted that while the color scheme of the ceremony was red and white, comparable to crimson and cream (the official Fraternity colors), the theme was chosen as a symbol of their love. “My husband loves the color[s] red and white […] red and white is kind of a symbol of love,” said Gay.
Gay also speculated that though he and his partner did upload the ceremony video onto YouTube, he believes that a rival Greek organization reposted the video with the intention of it going viral: “I have no other choice but to believe that it came from another Greek organization. They took a great day …threw it out to the media and put a huge spin on it so that it would be very controversial and it became a disgrace,” said Gay.
