Chick-Fil-A CEO Dan Cathy Speaks Out On Gay Marriage Controversy | HuffPost Voic

Contents:

• CHICK-FIL-A CEO DAN CATHY SPEAKS OUT ON GAY MARRIAGE CONTROVERSY
• YEARS LATER, CHICK-FIL-A STILL FEELS HEAT OM LGBTQ GROUPS OVER ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE REMARKS
• CHICK-FIL-A PRINT COM CLEAN ABOUT COMPANY'S ANTI-GAY PHILOSOPHY
• CHICK-FIL-A CEO DAN CATHY STEPS TO GAY-MARRIAGE BATE
• CHICK-FIL-A CEO CATHY: GAY MARRIAGE STILL WRONG, BUT I'LL SHUT UP ABOUT IT AND SELL CHICKEN
• CHICK-FIL-A GAY FLAP A 'WAKP CALL' FOR COMPANI

CHICK-FIL-A CEO DAN CATHY SPEAKS OUT ON GAY MARRIAGE CONTROVERSY

Chick-fil-A Print and CEO Dan Cathy apparently laments gettg the fast-food cha volved the bate over marriage equaly, but he isn't takg back his anti-gay ments. Cathy spoke wh The Atlanta Journal-Constutn about the homophobic remark that land him and the bs hot water nearly two years ago.

YEARS LATER, CHICK-FIL-A STILL FEELS HEAT OM LGBTQ GROUPS OVER ANTI-GAY MARRIAGE REMARKS

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.

But the 2012 cint wasn’t the first time the Cathys were acced of homophobia. 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. 9 ln to anti-gay groups 2010 through the WShape Foundatn, the Cathy fay’s charable givg anizatn found by Tett Cathy 1984. 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.

CHICK-FIL-A PRINT COM CLEAN ABOUT COMPANY'S ANTI-GAY PHILOSOPHY

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. In a 2014 terview wh the Atlanta Journal-Constutn, Cathy admted he regretted gettg volved the gay marriage bate.

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. The Cathys’ “dissonant view, ” as one brand nsultant lled , may have fally hurt Chick-fil-A’s bottom le — pecially now that a popular, non-homophobic alternative to Chick-fil-A’s sandwich has emerged. 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.

CHICK-FIL-A CEO DAN CATHY STEPS TO GAY-MARRIAGE BATE

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.

Others said that their Chick-fil-A -workers and supervisors didn’t tolerate homophobic behavr om lleagu.

CHICK-FIL-A CEO CATHY: GAY MARRIAGE STILL WRONG, BUT I'LL SHUT UP ABOUT IT AND SELL CHICKEN

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. 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.

CHICK-FIL-A GAY FLAP A 'WAKP CALL' FOR COMPANI

While Chick-fil-A’s donatn strategy has changed for the time beg, still rri an image of beg anti-gay. 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). In short, Chick-fil-A uld vt s future by ntug to distance self om s past anti-gay actns.

Diversy is lic, homophobia is not. ) Gay rights activists have also cricized Cathy himself for takg a stance agast same-sex marriage, as well as his fay's history of donatg to anti-gay fast-food anchis have drawn public outrage over their rpons to the ongog unrt across the untry, as Wednday, McDonald's tweeted the nam of several black people who were shot by police, along wh the msagg: "They were one of . Chick-fil-A, the fast-food cha famo for ied chicken sandwich, is ntug to tch cricism om the LGBTQ muny for anti-gay marriage remarks s CEO ma seven years this week, the cy uncil San Anton, Texas, voted to ban the cha om openg a rtrant the ternatnal airport gay-rights supporters cricized Louisville's mor-league soccer anchise for nng a promotn wh Chick-fil-A that offered ee sandwich if the team story:Louisville Cy FC fac LGBTQ backlash over partnership wh Chick-fil-ARints also recently chastised the Ccnati Reds for partnerg wh the cha to offer ee chicken sandwich wh a drk purchase to fans wearg Reds gear on Openg Day Universy New Jersey drew headl late last year when elimated Chick-fil-A om a list of potential on-mp vendors bee stunts protted over the cha's reputatn for an anti-gay bias.

' And I pray God's mercy on our generatn that has such a priful, arrogant attu to thk that we have the dacy to fe what marriage is about, " Cathy said a rad pany's charable foundatn, The Wshape Foundatn, has fund nservative Christian groups, cludg the Fay Rearch Foundatn; Alliance Defendg Freedom, which supports re-crimalizg homosexualy; and Exod Internatnal, a now-funct group known for "nversn therapy" tend to make gay people bee pany has repeatedly said don't support any polil agenda on fai and marriage, but the fact that Cathy didn't apologize for his statements has been a long-standg plat wh LGBTQ activists.