Chick-fil-A Stops Donations To Anti-LGBTQ Groups

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Topline: Fast-casual restaurant Chick-fil-A will stop donating to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Salvation Army, the company announced on Monday, cutting its last financial ties to organizations that advocates say discriminate against LGBTQ people after years of criticism.

• Chick-fil-A’s charitable arm, the Chick-fil-A Foundation, said it will focus donations on a small number of organizations in the areas of hunger, homelessness and education and cease donations to the FCA and the Salvation Army.
• The FCA, a nonprofit that supports Christian sports programs and athletes, says in its mission statement that “we believe that marriage is exclusively the union of one man and one woman” and that sex outside of marraige is prohibited.
• The Salvation Army has been accused of denying housing and other services to transgender people and for having a long history of anti-LGBTQ views. The faith-based charity denies it refuses services to anyone because of their sexual orientation of gender identity, but it also continues to say that gay Christians should remain celibate because “Scripture forbids sexual intimacy between members of the same sex.”
• The president and COO of Chick-fil-A said in a statement that the company isn’t ending donations to faith-based organizations altogether.
• The company instead will give larger donations to work-readiness program Junior Achievement USA and homeless nonprofit Covenant House International. Chick-fil-A will start donating $25,000 to a local food bank after each new Chick-fil-A opening.

Crucial quote: “There’s no question we know that, as we go into new markets, we need to be clear about who we are,” Chick-fil-A president and COO Tim Tassopoulos said in an interview with Bisnow. “There are lots of articles and newscasts about Chick-fil-A, and we thought we needed to be clear about our message.”

Chief critics: Right-wing and religious pundits decried the decision, saying that Chick-fil-A caved to left-wing pressure. LGBTQ organizations applauded the move, but remained skeptical Chick-fil-A would follow through on its promise and called on the company to actively support LGBTQ causes.

“In addition to refraining from financially supporting anti-LGBTQ organizations, Chick-Fil-A still lacks policies to ensure safe workplaces for LGBTQ employees and should unequivocally speak out against the anti-LGBTQ reputation that their brand represents,” Drew Anderson, GLAAD’s director of Campaigns and Rapid Response, said in a statement. GLAAD is an organization that monitors anti-LGBTQ discrimination.

Key background: In 2012, Chick-fil-A made headlines for its opposition to marriage equality and donations to groups fighting it (including the Family Research Council), which spurred nationwide condemnation and boycotts.

And while the company, which is deeply entwined with Christian beliefs and values, stopped donating to political organizations after the uproar, tax filings showed that Chick-fil-A’s nonprofit arm continued donating to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Salvation Army. The renewed scrutiny did little to help the company distance itself from the backlash, and it has since become a symbol in the LGBTQ culture war.