Say NO! to Chick-fil-A
I have decided to say NO! to Chick-fil-A, if you support gay’s rights you should too. When looking for information about them I learned that the organization holds conservative Christian’s values and donates money to other organizations with an anti-gay-marriage agenda.My journey investigating the company began by observing their long line in the University I attend. The fact that people waited in line when there were many other options caught my attention, so I wanted to learn more about the corporation. The purpose of this story is to provide information and evidence to you about Chick-fil-A’s political position in relation to gays rights, giving you the tools to make informed decisions when choosing where to invest your money.
The President of Chick-fil-A, Dan Cathy, has in more than one occasion demonstrated the company’s support for the “traditional family unit”, in other words opposition to same-sex marriage, according to CNN’s Chick-fil-A wades into a fast-food fight over same-sex marriage rights. Since then eating at Chick-fil-A became more than a choice of restaurant to have lunch, it can be a political statement. The reason for that is that eating there is investing your money in anti-gay marriage agendas once their profit is used for that purpose.
The chain has felt resistance from city officials in Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. James Kenney, Philadelphia Councilman, has written a letter to Cathy telling him to “Take a hike and take your intolerance with you,” and “There is no place for this type of hate in our great City of Brotherly and Sisterly Affection.” In the other hand, they have received support from conservative religious figures and politicos. This speaks to Chick-fil-A position towards diversity, they have a political agenda that does not benefit advancement towards equal rights for all human beings. It has instead an agenda that seeks to assure that the LGBTQA community will not have the same rights as heterosexuals to consolidate their love through marriage.
According to a CNN/ORC poll, same-sex marriage is supported by the majority of Americans. The results of this poll represent a considerable shift in public opinion during the past two decades. In 2010, 60% of Americans reported having a close friend or family member who is gay. The program director of the LGBT advocacy group at The Center Orange County explained that these kind of rhetoric (anti same-sex marriage) are hurtful and affect families, children and parents. The information reported in this news provides evidence of Chick-fil-A’s position in relation to same-sex marriage as well as public opinion and it seems like Americans are not willing to accept prejudicial positions like the one Cathy holds.
Converging information can be found in an article wrote by Rev. Uzel. Chick-fil-A is known to be a corporation that includes religious beliefs as a part of their culture, one example of that is closing on Sundays no matter what. Their beliefs however have gone beyond providing their employees with a day off to attend service. In 2011, the corporation posted over $4.1 billion dollars in sales. They have been accused of donating profits to institutions with an anti-gay marriage agenda. Dan Cathy, the president, said they are “guilty as charged”. Their position has been defended by Rev. Billy Graham for publicly supporting “God’s definition of marriage.” As Cathy’s donations benefit extreme religious agendas the author, Rev. Uzzel, supports their actions. The information provided by him converge with the information provided in other sources such as the CNN article Chick-fil-A wades into a fast-food fight over same-sex marriage rights.
Why should you say NO! to Chick-fil-A? When you eat at Chick-fil-A YOUR MONEY is going into organizations that articulate politically against gays’ right, against same-sex-marriage.
But…Also,
Same-sex marriage support in the U.S.
According to Zivi (2014), as of 2014, 19 states had legalized same-sex marriage in comparison to only 2 states in 2008. The federal government recognizes state-sanctioned same-sex marriages. Although these changes represent a significant advancement towards same-sex marriage and gay rights, people with “non-normative sexual orientation” continue to be harassed physically, emotionally, and financially. Polls show that the opposition to gay’s rights is generally decreasing but there are still considerable battles in the political world. A considerable part of opposing same-sex marriage and gays rights are based in religious discourses. In while some courts considered to be conservative have allowed same-sex marriage, others have gone as far as to introduce laws at state levels that allows discrimination against same-sex couples with justifications based on religious liberty. That is why the position of corporations such as Chick-fil-A’s, provided in the sections above, with an agenda against same-sex marriage is so concerning. Meaning: Chick-fil-A is in the wrong side of history!
In 2015, same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide. Read more here: Same-sex marriage in the United States.
IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE THAT IN 2018, PEOPLE STILL STRUGGLE FOR BEING QUEER. SAY NO TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT HELP PERPETUATE INEQUALITY OF RIGHTS. SAY NO! TO CHICK-FIL-A!
