When Chick-fil-A announced in August that they were against same-sex marriage, they were met with a storm of opposition to both their stance and the fact that the company gives millions to anti-gay groups.
But Chicago-based LGBT advocacy group Civil Rights Agenda reports that Chick-fil-A officials declared in an internal document that the company “will treat every person equally, regardless of sexual orientation,” and that the president of the company has agreed to cease donations to right-wing groups that oppose same-sex marriage.
Negotiations have been in the works for the past several weeks after Chicago Alderman Joe Moreno blocked the fast-food chain from opening stores in Chicago because of its anti-gay views. Thanks to his stance, and thousands of others across the country, the fast-food chain has agreed to take a “much closer look” at the organizations that receive donations from the WinShape Foundation, a non-profit created by the COO Dan Cathy, which is funded almost entirely by the Atlanta-based corporation.
“Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena,” Chick-fil-A wrote in an emailed statement to NBC News.
While we won’t be rushing to purchase a two-pickled chicken sandwich and waffle fries anytime soon (the wounds need time to heal, folks), their change in attitude shows that we can make a difference. Whether it’s with a boycott or buying Starbucks, they changed their corporate policy and money siphoning because we didn’t back down.
Now that is something that is absolutely satisfying.
Photo: washingtonpost.com
