Chick-fil-A announced today that it will stop funding two Christian charities with histories of opposing same-sex marriage after weeks of protests from LGBTQ activists.
In the past, Chick-fil-A has donated millions of dollars to both The Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Both organizations have a history of opposing same-sex marriage, according to cnbc.
“We made multi-year commitments to both organisations and we fulfilled those obligations in 2018,” a spokeswoman for Chick-fil-A told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, adding that the company will now focus its charitable giving on “education, homelessness and hunger.”
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As Chick-fil-A continues to expand outside the southern part of the U.S., activists have been putting pressure on the company to change. Because of these protests, Chick-fil-A’s first U.K. location will close when its lease expires.
Chick-Fil-A has received backlash in the past for its charitable donations and CEO Dan Cathy’s public comments opposing gay marriage.
“If Chick-Fil-A is serious about their pledge to stop holding hands with divisive anti-LGBTQ activists, then further transparency is needed regarding their deep ties to organizations like Focus on the Family, which exist purely to harm LGBTQ people and families,” Drew Anderson, GLAAD’s director of campaigns and rapid response, said in a statement Monday.
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who coordinated an appreciation day for Chick-fil-A when it first came under fire back in 2012, joined a chorus of conservatives opposing Chick-fil-A’s move when he tweeted that the chain “betrayed loyal customers for $$.”
Roommates, what are your thoughts on this?
