Chick-fil-A just blinked on gay marriage
The Civil Rights Agenda, an Illinois advocacy group focused on sexual orientation issues, says a letter from a Chick-fil-A executive to a Chicago alderman indicates the Georgia-based fast-food chain is backing off its financial support for political opponents of gay marriage.
In a letter addressed to Alderman [Joe] Moreno and signed by Chick-fil-A’s Senior Director of Real Estate, it states, “The WinShape Foundations is now taking a much closer look at the organizations it considers helping, and in that process will remain true to its stated philosophy of not supporting organizations with political agendas.”
Winshape, a non-profit funded by Chick-fil-a, has donated millions of dollars to anti-LGBT groups, including some classified as hate groups, such as Focus on the Family and the National Organization for Marriage. In meetings the company executives clarified that they will no longer give to anti-gay organizations.
Jim Burruss of WABE (90.1FM) reports that he just got off the phone with Moreno’s office, which confirmed the letter and its content as outlined above.
The New York Daily News is quoting an unnamed Chick-fil-A representative as saying the company plans to “leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena.”
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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200 comments Add your comment
Whatever
September 19th, 2012
5:05 pm
HEHEHE – You get a bunch of guys making boats!
John4Lies
September 19th, 2012
5:06 pm
Woot woot 4 John. You go boy. We don’t like being labeled as haters b/c we don’t agree with civil rights.
Li'l Aynie
September 19th, 2012
5:07 pm
It was more than promising to stop making life difficult for gays! Chick-fil-a promised to contribute to worthwhile charitable and cultural causes, rather than to political BS.
John
September 19th, 2012
5:07 pm
They also called the Nazi’s a hate group…
Sparkle666
September 19th, 2012
5:09 pm
Apparently the one day sales boon created by the “appreciation day” was no match for the revenue lost to the boycotters. It reminds me of the tortoise and the hare. Change is a-comin’ to the USA!!! (You better hide your kids, you better hide your wife)
JustAnnie
September 19th, 2012
5:09 pm
Lynn, as a card-carrying lesbian, I can attest that a “glove in a glove” is biologically impossible. “Hand in the glove,” on the other hand works very well for us. Just saying.
Oh, and I think that whole “be fruiful and multiply” thing has been well-taken care of. If gay people marry, it isn’t going to stop straight ones from procreating. Nor is it going to stop some straight married couples from choosing not to procreate. Not to mention elderly and sterile coupls who can’t procreate but get married anyway. Your argument isn’t logical.
Eat More Kidz
September 19th, 2012
5:11 pm
Not enough people on earth, we must make sure that every couple can multiply naturally.
Baron DeKalb
September 19th, 2012
5:13 pm
I second the opinion of Dr. Cantaloupe above. If you keep eating at Chick-Fil-A, you will probably end up too fat to have sex with anyone. And they deserve to be boycotted for all of the years they’ve foisted the “Eat Mor Chickn” ads and billboards on us. I cringe every time I pass the one on 85 coming back from the airport, will someone please get rid of that and restore the So So Def records billboard.
Whatever
September 19th, 2012
5:13 pm
Look Liberals overreacted on this one and ended up looking stupid in the end to most moderate americans. You have plenty of real hate groups to deal with and I would gladdly support your opposition to those folks that protest at military funerals and blame gays for all the ills in the world, but unfortunately the same rights that allow you to attach a fast food chain protect the real hate groups from any type of prosecution. How is your view that you can marry a member of the same sex any better than someones belief that you shouldn’t?
Aquagirl
September 19th, 2012
5:14 pm
So Chik-Fil-A makes big money off the anti-gay crowd then punks them.
God bless capitalism, it wouldn’t work without gullible folks.
Kujohn
September 19th, 2012
5:15 pm
Too John. (just facts). Too poor John Just because you can type words on computer. Doesn’t mean that you should And just because you have read the bible doesn’t mean that you understand it
John you are a true idiot Just too dumb to even argue with. That is a fact
JustAnnie
September 19th, 2012
5:17 pm
Um, because not allowing me to marry my partner has direct impact on me legally, financially and emotioanlly, but me marrying my partner impacts exactly zero straight people’s marriages and lives?
Lea W
September 19th, 2012
5:17 pm
I’m proud to be a Christian and I LOVE Jesus Christ. God’s word says to hate the sin but love the sinner. So call me someone who hates, and you would be right, I hate sin. Do an internet search on Genesis, Chapter 2 starting with verse 21 and you will understand where we Christians are coming from. Praying for most of you, because believe me it sounds like you need it!!
Whatever
September 19th, 2012
5:18 pm
HA! I knew it would not take long in this city for someone to compare gay rights to slavery… OK you take the slavery card, and I will go with the pedifiles. They don’t think there is anything wrong with thier emotional desires. Should I tolerate that kind of behavior. How about multiple wives. That one is being pushed a lot these days in popular media. Better Multiple underaged wives. Multiple underaged wives who are blood related… Should I tolerate that. How about folfs who have sex with pets? How about folks who like to sleep with dead people. DO I HAVE TO TOLERATE THEM!!!!
buzzy
September 19th, 2012
5:21 pm
Oh wow. I didn’t know that Chik-Fil-A gave money to Focus on the Family. I consider Focus on the Family to be a very weird group. I used to hear that Dobson guy sometimes on the radio and he was rather spooky. He was very subtle in the way he tried to control people. Scary.
Anyway, I’m glad Chik-fil-A decided not to give to these groups anymore. There are plenty of other worthy groups the company can contribute to.
JustAnnie
September 19th, 2012
5:23 pm
Two gay people getting married = two consenting adults who are not hurting anyone.
Pedophiles = someone hurting someone.
Underage marriage = one person not old enough to consent.
Sex with animals = the animal being harmed and unable to give consent.
Multiple wives = as with gay people, honestly, if all parties in that relationship are consenting adults, then let them be.
Dead people = kind of weird, but actually, why do you care?
Methinks “Whatever” is pent-up about sex and probably needs to get laid.
Steve
September 19th, 2012
5:24 pm
@K-Ster
Of course, the only group it is allowable to hate are the “old, white ‘Christian’ men”. The irony is palpable, and quite sickening. I try to pray for you and your ilk, but it is difficult to be sincere.
Carlton
September 19th, 2012
5:26 pm
As long as the focus is on chick-fil-a, I hope someone looks into the ingredients they use, the way they process their food, treat their employees, financially support their causes, etc. Knowledge of this would be more beneficial to people who buy their product.
Enough!
September 19th, 2012
5:30 pm
Would love to see real statistics on CFAs business since this started. Suspect the net result is they are about the same. They haven’t changed their beliefs. They respect all their customers. Freedom of choice is the American way. Living with the consequences has become un-American. We will all be judged in the end.
Chic-Fillet is Good so pissoff
September 19th, 2012
5:38 pm
Go start your own company then you can support who you want. What a bunch of whining babies we have this day and time.
JustAnnie
September 19th, 2012
5:39 pm
Lea W, is believing you’re better than someone else a sin? We’ve heard “hate the sin, love the sinner” so many times now, it has about the same impact as the adults speaking during a Peanuts cartoon. You and your church will pray for me all day, but you’d cringe if me and my girlfriend sat in one of your church services holding hands, or if we shared a peck on the lips in front of your holier-than-thou eyes. People like you are why I want nothing to do with Christianity, ever again. There’s nothing wrong with me, exactly the way I am now. I was born this way and very happy to be me.
Aquagirl
September 19th, 2012
5:44 pm
There’s nothing wrong with me, exactly the way I am now. I was born this way and very happy to be me.
Passive-aggressive “I’ll pray for you, poor Sodomite doomed to hell” in 3…2..1….
LadyMe
September 19th, 2012
5:47 pm
Hurray! I don’t want to sound hard to please (because ceasing funding is definitely appreciated) but I would dearly love it if they would contribute funds toward legislation that helps the LGBT community to counter the millions they have donated in the past that stood in opposition to them… BUT… the fact that they are ceasing funding to these organizations is AWESOME and their decision to stop goes a long way to repairing my relationship with this corporation (which I’ve boycotted for the past 5 years).
WaitAMinute
September 19th, 2012
5:53 pm
This is an example of the ineffectual right-wing support. I am glad they joined the 21st century.
Why the long faces
September 19th, 2012
6:10 pm
You just have to love how many of the righties are all upset and pooped their tighty whities
Chickfila made a decision.
If you do not like it, contact them and express your concern.
Good evening
billywingartenson
September 19th, 2012
6:22 pm
Focus on the family is not a hate group, but it almost got there. the guy who took over for dobson – his son is sticking to religious beliefs, which allthough hateful,are not considered hate
NOM is a class 2 (lower level ) hate group – it depends on just how vicious their speech is.
FRC is a hate group, period = not for religious beliefs but for slandering and post vile and horrid lies etc about gay people
BTW, as might be expected, FRCs president – Tony Perkins is a racist as well
http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/picture-worth-thousand-memories
This Is Bananas
September 19th, 2012
6:28 pm
I dont see why Chick Fil La has to explain their position. I dont approve a same sex marriage, however, I dont think that they should be discriminated against either. Yes I believe that participating in homosexual activities are a sin, but so is adultry….be we dont discriminate against those who have cheated on a spouse. With that being said, Chick Fil La has the right to state their opinion, this is a free country, just likes the gay community can kiss in public. I say dont back down Chick Fil la, you will be supported….point blank!
billywingartenson
September 19th, 2012
6:29 pm
Re a couple comments where people said that FRC is not a hate group but agreed with other groups being such.
this is an old political trick. People will call out other similar groups as bad, but support their favorite hate group. Its all a BS way to gain credibility
If you saw Peter Spriggs of FRC speak at our state legislature , you’d know what wierd means.
BTW IMHO his pants are too tight on the butt, he was an actor in xtian plays in college and I found one reference to his being a professional actor.
Spriggs is an example of Reaction Formation – the more you object to something, the more you are that something. Its the tech version of the old “he doth protest too much
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_formation
OVER IT
September 19th, 2012
6:32 pm
Equating the SPLC to Neo Nazis? What idiocy. Nobody’s telling you g.d. conservative Xians where to spend your money or what groups to give to. Just if you give to groups which demonize gay people, you probably shouldn’t expect gay people to patronize your stupid chicken place. And yes, Christ-fil-A BLINKED… I know tons of people, straight and gay, who are boycotting. Clearly, their business suffered. Now all you social conservatives, go crawl back under your rocks. And take your hate-filled “morality” and shove it!
Laurie
September 19th, 2012
6:35 pm
I am glad that you stop giving to that organization. There are more important orgaizations.Like homeless vetrans. Of Our orphans of hungry children.
Laurie
September 19th, 2012
6:36 pm
Enter your comments here
jsmooth
September 19th, 2012
6:52 pm
IF, if the above comments are true and accurate, I am completely in disagrement and embarrased with the management team at Chick Fil A. First off, what “hate groups” or supposed “anti gay” groups are funded through Winshape? I would say none. Secondly, I am quite famaliar with WInshape and their foundation. Chick FIl A would never allow funds to be used in a counter productive way to the overall corporations goals and desires. This article is political correctness to the absolute tee.
Josh
September 19th, 2012
6:58 pm
Great move in the right direction. It’s good to see that a Christian based company recognized the statement from Dan Cathy was never the problem but more importantly the groups they gave money too supported anti gay groups that hurt others. Do unto other as you would have done to you! Good job ChickFila!
Tdawg
September 19th, 2012
7:13 pm
K_Ster let me see if I get this. You hate whites. You like killing babies and you are either queer or lesbian? Yea, I could see how letting low lifes like you run this country would make it better.
Tdawg
September 19th, 2012
7:26 pm
Over It,……. Hate filled??????????? Well now then MR Kettle meat Mr Pot. Fool you’re the ones that needs to craw back under a rock or go back into your closet and close the door and stay the He!! there. I’m sick and tired of a bunch of low lifes trying to shove their beliefs and way of life on me. I don’t won’t to hear your whinney arse mouths spreading your BS agenda. Your’re a abomination to your own sex, so you can take your lies and well I’ll let you finish that last sentence. I’m pretty sure I know where you’d like to have it shoved.
Jimbolini
September 19th, 2012
7:28 pm
I ate at Chick-Fil-A today. I enjoy my freedom of speech and respect their freedom of speech. In fact I respect the freedom of speech of the gay community. How can anyone get hate out of what his opinion is? What I did like was the turn out for the support of Chick-Fil-A and their right to an opinion. The gay community continues to take a step backwards as they continue to whine about someone who disagrees with them. Two guys French Kissing is not going to help matters!!
terri
September 19th, 2012
7:45 pm
Enter your comments here
terri
September 19th, 2012
7:46 pm
Hmmm, I will believe it when I see it. As for Focus on the Family being a hate group, yes they are and are proud of it.
S.B.
September 19th, 2012
7:51 pm
Well now… Looks like the REAL issue here is $$$ and not God.
Amen and roll on.
the_dude
September 19th, 2012
7:55 pm
That is too bad I was hoping they would stick to their guns. I guess money wins over anything else.
This is Mrs. Norman Maine
September 19th, 2012
8:43 pm
Well! After people went to all the trouble of standing in line to show their support, the company gave in anyway. *snickers*
Joseph Benning
September 19th, 2012
8:49 pm
Be nice if you people had actually posted the letter. I don’t believe for one second that such a letter exists. I FIRMLY believe that you have made this up in order to bully someone into supporting your political agenda and perversion. But we will see what CFA has to say…and yes I did contact them.
Kujohn
September 19th, 2012
8:50 pm
Looks like chic fila has caved under the pressure of public opinion Ha ha. Guess the bigots an homophobes like (tdawg) ( Steve ) an (lea w ) will have to take their bibles An go back under their rocks. I thought the chic fil a appreciation day was such a success What happened ?
Joe
September 19th, 2012
9:08 pm
Who exactly classifies “Focus on the Family” and the “National Organization for Marriage as hate groups. Are they on some official U.S. government list or is this some made up fact by a biased journalist. The story has a lot of merit on its own without injecting such unsubstantiated statements. I am not familiar with either group, but looking at their website, I do not make the connection to a hate group. The quality of journalism continues to decline and journalists are inserting their bias (both sides of the political spectrum) ahead of objective reporting.
Kerry
September 19th, 2012
9:20 pm
As a Christian who happens to be gay…”hate group” is relative. Let me tell you… the “hate” that
has spewed forth toward people like me from the “Religious Right”..that is what I call it. Right wing “folks” have called me ALL sorts of things. Well I am going to Heaven (John3:16) and I pray for you all to have your hearts softened by my Lord and Savior…Jesus Christ. And I mean that!
Chick-fil-A just blinked on gay marriage - Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) - MyPress.SE - Universal News Agency
September 19th, 2012
9:33 pm
[...] Chick-fil-A just blinked on gay marriageAtlanta Journal Constitution (blog)The Civil Rights Agenda, an Illinois advocacy group focused on sexual orientation issues, says a letter from a Chick-fil-A executive to a Chicago alderman indicates the Georgia-based fast-food chain is backing off its financial support for political …Chick-Fil-A says it will stop donations to anti-gay groupsNew York Daily NewsChick-fil-A says it will stop funding anti-gay groupsNBCNews.com (blog)Chicago Alderman: Chick-fil-A RelentedDaily BeastWGCL Atlanta -SDSU Collegian -Washington Bladeall 176 news articles » [...]
Megan
September 19th, 2012
9:56 pm
I can’t believe that Chick Fil-A sold out! How disappointing that they allowed themselves to be bullied by an idiot like Alderman Ignoramo. I guess it won’t matter if I no longer eat there because now the LGBT community will offset those of us that will no longet eat there.
Why the long faces
September 19th, 2012
10:01 pm
Don’t cry Meg
It will be alright
Joe
September 19th, 2012
10:55 pm
So once again all of you are acting like biased journalists (either side). Of course I believe you have been discriminated against, but can you answer the question beyond hate group being relative. I heard a friend of mine who happens to have a large family being called a “breeder” at a party by some gay people, and I would not define them as a “hate group”. I would define them as having double standards. I just want to know on what basis do 2 christian centered groups get defined as hate groups and by what official “expert” other than the incompetent journalist writing the article.
Blake
September 20th, 2012
10:24 am
I’ve never heard that Focus & NOM were hate groups. Family Research Council, sure, but not NOM & FotF.