Chick-fil-A and LGBTQ people
Issues arose between Chick-fil-A and the LGBTQ community in June 2012 after Dan T. Cathy, the fast food restaurant's chief executive officer, made a series of public comments opposing same-sex marriage.
Chick-fil-A released a statement in July 2012 stating, "Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena.
"[1] In March 2014, tax filings for 2012 showed the group stopped funding all but one organization which had been previously criticized, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
[2][3][4] In 2017, tax filings showed that the groups supported by Chick-fil-A expanded to include The Salvation Army, which has been seen as counter to LGBTQ rights.
[10] As of 2021, the owner, Dan Cathy, is still actively involved with groups such as the National Christian Foundation, an organization "spearheading the derailment of the Equality Act".
The WinShape Foundation, a charitable endeavor of Chick-fil-A founder S. Truett Cathy and his family, stated that it would not allow same-sex couples to participate in its marriage retreats.
WinShape contributed grants to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and Exodus International, an organization noted for supporting ex-gay conversion therapy.
The Family Research Council, an organization listed as an anti-gay hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center in winter 2010,[16] received $1000.
[17] In January 2011, the media reported that the American fast food restaurant chain Chick-fil-A was co-sponsoring a marriage conference along with the Pennsylvania Family Institute (PFI), an organization that had filed an amicus brief against striking down Proposition 8 in California (see Perry v.
[19] Responding on its official company Facebook page, Chick-fil-A said that support of the PFI retreat had come from a local franchisee, stating "We have determined that one of our independent restaurant operators in Pennsylvania was asked to provide sandwiches to two Art of Marriage video seminars.
[21][22][23]The following month, on July 2, Biblical Recorder published an interview with Dan Cathy, who was asked about opposition to his company's "support of the traditional family."
The article noted that WinShape and the Chick-fil-A Foundation had "dramatically" cut donations to groups opposed by same-sex marriage supporters.
"[31][32] According to Focus on the Family website, CitizenLink.com: "Contrary to reports first made by the gay-activist group The Civil Rights Agenda (TCRA) on Tuesday and later picked up by mainstream media outlets, Chick-fil-A and its charitable-giving arm, the WinShape Foundation, did not agree to stop making donations to groups that support the biblical definition of marriage in exchange for being allowed to open a franchise in Chicago.
[34] In March 2014, new tax filings from 2012 showed that the company had stopped funding all but one organization which had been previously criticized by LGBTQ activists and supporters, and that group received just $25,390.
"[45] Later the same month, Washington D.C. mayor Democrat Vincent C. Gray continued the trend by announcing Chick-fil-A is not welcome in his city, and proceeded to call it "hate chicken".
[46] The proposed bans in Boston and Chicago drew criticism from some liberal pundits, legal experts, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Kevin Drum of Mother Jones magazine said "[T]here's really no excuse for Emanuel's and Menino's actions... you don't hand out business licenses based on whether you agree with the political views of the executives.
"[47] UCLA law professor and blogger Eugene Volokh observed, "[D]enying a private business permits because of such speech by its owner is a blatant First Amendment violation.
[51][52] It was not until mid-August 2019 that city officials agreed to release documents about its decision to exclude the company from the airport "based on the restaurant chain's donations to religious ministries".
[57] Christine Quinn, a lesbian politician and then-Speaker of the City Council who was seeking the nomination as Democratic candidate for the mayoralty in the next election, was outspoken in her opposition to keeping the Chick-fil-A franchise or allowing others, and wrote a letter to this effect to NYU President John Sexton on official letterhead, opening with the words, "I write as the Speaker of the NYC Council", urging NYU to evict a Chick-fil-A due to Cathy's opposition to same-sex marriage.
[60] Davidson College in North Carolina announced on August 13, 2012, that, in response to a petition which received 500 signatures, the school would stop serving Chick-fil-A on campus at the monthly "After Midnight" events.
Gay rights activists organized a "Kiss Off" to occur on August 3,[62] an event where LGBTQ individuals would show affection in public.
[63] On August 15, 2012, Floyd Lee Corkins II of Virginia entered the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the Family Research Council carrying 15 Chick-fil-A sandwiches, a 9 mm handgun, and a box of ammunition.
[73] In response to the July 2, 2012, interview, the Jim Henson Company, which had entered its Pajanimals in a kids' meal toy licensing arrangement in 2011, said that it would cease its business relationship with Chick-fil-A, and donate payment for the brand to Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).
Upon being presented with petitions demanding that Berenstain Bears be pulled from a Chick-fil-A promotion, HarperCollins issued a statement saying "We have a long history of diversity and inclusiveness and work tirelessly to protect the freedom of expression.
[81] On August 1, 2012, Chick-fil-A restaurants experienced a large show of public support across the nation with the company reporting record-breaking sales.
The good fortune follows several years of impressive expansion and strong sales, which have pushed the privately held company's valuation north of $4.5 billion, making billionaires out of its founders ...
