Chick-fil-A Anti-Gay Controversy: Gay Employe Speak Out | HuffPost Voic

Contents:

• I’M GAY AND I EAT AT CHICK-FIL-A. SHOULD I FEEL ASHAMED?
• TAKE THAT, CHICK-FIL-A: BURGER KG UNVEILS NEW GAY CHICKEN SANDWICH FOR PRI WH PROCEEDS BENEFG HRC
• CHICK-FIL-A WON’T STOP FUNDG ANTI-GAY , SO BURGER KG IS STEPPG TO HELP
• CHICK-FIL-A ANTI-GAY CONTROVERSY: GAY EMPLOYE SPEAK OUT

I’M GAY AND I EAT AT CHICK-FIL-A. SHOULD I FEEL ASHAMED?

Tett Cathy and his wife Jeate Cathy, has donated over $1 ln to groups that actively oppose same-sex marriage, cludg Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Fom; the anti-LGBTQ Christian group Foc on the Fay; the SLPC-certified hate group Fay Rearch Council; the now-funct ex-gay therapy group Exod Internatnal; the exclively for-heterosexuals-only Marriage & Fay Legacy Fund; and the Fellowship of Christian Athlet (FCA), a relig groups whose “sexual pury policy” prohibs any homosexual acts. However, The Chick-fil-A Foundatn’s IRS filgs om 2015 revealed that the foundatn donated $1 ln to the FCA; $200, 000 to the Pl Anrson Youth Home, a Geia-based rintial home for troubled youth which said that child abe homosexualy; and $130, 000 to the Salvatn Army, a relig ternatnal chary that has long opposed same-sex marriage and anti-LGBTQ hog discrimatn protectns while supportg relig exemptns om LGBTQ+ anti-discrimatn laws.

One anonymo gay worker disuraged boytts, notg that they would mostly harm the cha’s LGBTQ+ employe, but also acced the rtrant’s anti-gay and Christian supporters of beg self-righteo, arrogant, and bld to LGBTQ+ sufferg.

Several gay employe said some ctomers offered homophobic words of support for the bs while other people yelled at employe for supportg a homophobic pany. Chick-fil-A’s supporters have enuraged the pany to embrace s anti-gay social stanc, while s crics have urged the pany to turn away om s anti-LGBTQ+ practic. In 2012, gay activists and alli staged a natnal boytt of the cha after one lotn donated food to a semar hosted by the anti-gay Pennsylvania Fay Instute.

TAKE THAT, CHICK-FIL-A: BURGER KG UNVEILS NEW GAY CHICKEN SANDWICH FOR PRI WH PROCEEDS BENEFG HRC

Too often, those on the left make rporate statements to show support for same-sex marriage, abortn, or profany, but if Christians affirm tradnal valu, we’re nsired homophobic, fundamentalists, hate-mongers, and tolerant.

On Augt 3, 2012, however, gay rights activists around the natn held kiss- protts opposn to the rtrant’s anti-LGBTQ+ donatns and Dan Cathy’s views agast same-sex marriage. Around the same time, gay artist Manny Castro spray-pated a Torrance, California Chick-fil-A rtrant wh a picture of a w and the words “Tast Like Hate” prott of Cathy’s anti-gay statements.

The Amerin Fay Associatn also circulated a petn which stated, “It looks like you (Chick-fil-A) are abandong Christian valu and agreeg wh homosexual activists who say believg the Bible mak you a hater. In September 2022, Alexandre’s Bar the Dallas gayborhood of Oak Lawn announced the sale of s own “Chick-fil-gAy” sandwich that was only available on Sundays (the day on which all Chick-fil-A lotns are closed).

CHICK-FIL-A WON’T STOP FUNDG ANTI-GAY , SO BURGER KG IS STEPPG TO HELP

Notably, Chick-fil-A never explicly said would permanently stop donatg to anti-gay groups or anizatns that discrimate agast LGBTQ people — jt said was changg s philanthropic givg mol. In 2012, the Chigo-based Civil Rights Agenda issued a statement claimg that Chick-fil-A had promised to “no longer give to anti-gay anizatns, such as Foc on the Fay and the Natnal Organizatn for marriage.

As ThkProgrs reported 2017, Chick-fil-A ntued to bankroll anti-gay groups like the Fellowship of Christian Athlet, the Salvatn Army, and the Pl Anrson Youth Home through s foundatn. A year earlier, a Pennsylvania Chick-fil-A’s cisn to donate food to a marriage semar nducted by the Pennsylvania Fay Instute, a group known for s anti-gay advocy, prompted a natnwi boytt of the cha. Cathy issued a vio statement rponse to the boytt, which he claimed the pany “serv all people” and that, while he personally believ the “biblil fn of marriage, ” his pany don’t have an “anti-gay agenda.

In 2011, the same year a Pennsylvania Chick-fil-A anchise donated food to a lol anti-gay anizatn, the LGBTQ advocy group Equaly Matters obtaed tax rerds which revealed that the Cathy fay had donated more than $1.

CHICK-FIL-A ANTI-GAY CONTROVERSY: GAY EMPLOYE SPEAK OUT

1 ln gift to the Marriage & Fay Foundatn, a group that promoted so-lled tradnal marriage and opposed both gay marriage and divorce; $480, 000 to the Fellowship of Christian Athlet, an athletic anizatn that requir applints to agree to a “sexual pury statement” that nmns LGBTQ people for livg “impure liftyle[s]”; and $1, 000 to Exod Internatnal, a group that promot anti-gay nversn therapy. For Chick-fil-A’s opponents, the problem was bigger than Cathy’s anti-gay ments, was that he was apparently puttg his money where his mouth was, and he had a lot of money to go around. Though Chick-fil-A never managed to fully shed s reputatn as a homophobic purveyor of lic chicken sandwich, ntued to expand s natnal prence, pecially above the Mason-Dixon le.