…from the accusation that it was “anti-LGBT” as far as gay activists, the mainstream media, and the general public was concerned? It’s hard to escape the conclusion that it was.
Tony Perkins, President of the Family Research Council (FRC) expressed this sentiment eloquently and forcefully in response to the company’s November announcement. FRC had been the target of a would-be assassin who went after it because the Southern Poverty Law Center had classified it as a hate group. (We mentioned this incident in part 2 of this series, but we did not quote Perkins to the extent we will quote him here.) The gunman planned to threaten as many as he could, smear Chick-fil-A sandwiches in the faces of as many as he could, and murder as many as he could. Thankfully, he wasn’t successful and no one was killed, although one FRC employee, Leo Johnson, took a bullet in his arm. Chick-fil-A executives never contacted FRC in the aftermath of the incident,
The gunman planned to threaten as many as he could, smear Chick-fil-A sandwiches in the faces of as many as he could, and murder as many as he could. Thankfully, he wasn’t successful and no one was killed.
[n]ot even to ask about Leo. Obviously, Chick-fil-A wanted then what they want publicly now: as much distance from our movement as possible.
That was tough, but we stayed quiet — hoping that if groups like FRC stood beside them, the company Christians had come to love would have the courage to keep living out their values in the public square. And for seven years, they seemed to. Even when the mob turned up the heat, blocking them from airports, cities, and college campuses, Chick-fil-A rode a wave of conservative support to its highest profits ever. They didn’t just survive the LGBT-initiated boycotts — they thrived, doubling sales since the moment liberals decided it was a “controversy” to give to charities like the Salvation Army.
Whole states got involved — protecting Chick-fil-A’s freedom to believe in legislation that was even named after the company. Cabinet members like Secretary Elaine Chao stuck out their necks, promising to investigate the ban in San Antonio’s terminals. Millions of families drove out of their way to stop at Chick-fil-A — not because the chicken was that good, but because their conviction was. If you’re wondering why the backlash is so strong, it’s because the people who held up this company as a model of moral courage were betrayed. Unlike so many others in corporate America, Chick-fil-A was standing on truth and winning. Then, after years of holding the line, they just up and walked off the field, leaving loyal customers holding the bag.
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top photo credit: Evidence / Family Research Council / used by permission
Copyright © 2020 by B. Nathaniel Sullivan. All rights reserved.