Chick-fil-A Print Com Clean About Company's Anti-Gay Philosophy | Media Matters for Ameri

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. 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.

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

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 PRINT COM CLEAN ABOUT COMPANY'S ANTI-GAY PHILOSOPHY

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 CEO DAN CATHY STEPS TO GAY-MARRIAGE BATE

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. 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 CEO CATHY: GAY MARRIAGE STILL WRONG, BUT I'LL SHUT UP ABOUT IT AND SELL CHICKEN

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