Why I'll Still Be Eating at Chick-fil-A

"I was once asked why I don't participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I'll be there." ~ Mother Teresa

In light of the controversy about Chick-fil-A reportedly condemning gay marriage recently, this quote by Mother Teresa came to my mind.  It is one of my favorite quotes, and I try to live by its wisdom in my own life; putting my energy into the things that I support, instead of putting my energy into the things I am against.  I happen to be very much in support of equality for all people, and in this day and age, that heavily means that I support LGBT rights.

The media has reported this week that Dan Cathy, the President of Chick-fil-A, recently made anti-gay statements and took a firm stand against gay marriage.  Haven't we learned yet not to trust the media without digging into the truth ourselves?  I have.  So I did some research.  Turns out that the subject of gay marriage, or even homosexuality, was never mentioned in the interview at all.

But wait... CNN clearly reported that "the comments of company President Dan Cathy about gay marriage to Baptist Press on Monday have ignited a social media wildfire." and that "Cathy said 'Guilty as charged,' when asked about his company’s support of the traditional family unit as opposed to gay marriage."  And TIME magazine's headline stated "Boston Mayor Blocks Chick-fil-A Franchise from City over Homophobic Attitude".  And what about the Los Angeles Times article titled "Is Chick-fil-A anti-gay marriage?  'Guilty as charged,' leader says"?


Hmm... Here's what the article actually said.  And exactly what Dan Cathy said:

Some have opposed the company's support of the traditional family. "Well, guilty as charged," said Cathy when asked about the company's position.
"We are very much supportive of the family -- the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that.
"We operate as a family business ... our restaurants are typically led by families; some are single. We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families. We are very much committed to that," Cathy emphasized.
"We intend to stay the course," he said. "We know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the Lord, we live in a country where we can share our values and operate on biblical principles."

So going back to Mother Teresa's quote, I have to believe that it is astonishingly biased and juvenile to surmise from that article alone that Cathy is homophobic, and to report that he is against gay marriage.  Some might argue that saying you are for traditional marriage is the same thing as saying that you are against gay marriage.  I have to respectfully disagree.  And I have to respect that Cathy was completely positive in his overall message and stance on what he supports, without once speaking on anything he is against.

This is America, where people are entitled to their opinions.  Where people should be allowed to have a voice and speak about what they believe without being bullied into conformity.  It's ok to live your life by biblical standards.  I may not choose Christianity as a religion, but who am I to tell someone else they can't?

After all that has been said, as a passionate supporter of LGBT equality, I just don't see Dan Cathy as a hateful homophobe.  I was honestly considering jumping on the bandwagon of people who are boycotting Chick-fil-A, until I researched the truth.  This is what the media so often does...  it herds people like sheep into putting their energy and passion into what seems a popular cause.

Equality is a worthy and important cause.  But I still firmly believe that hating and fostering negativity towards those opposed isn't productive.  Rather, take a page from Mother Teresa.  Speak up, show love, educate.
After all, love always wins in the end, right?


UPDATE:
In doing further research, I discovered that part of the controversy is rooted in a radio interview Dan Cathy gave this week on The Ken Coleman Show (Saturdays, 2-3 ET., WDUN, AM 550/102.9 FM Gainesville, GA).  On the show, Cathy again spoke about his belief in traditional marriage as dictated in the Bible.  Again, he didn't speak about what he is against, but rather, what he supports.

Here's an audio excerpt of Cathy's radio interview:




So what can we glean from that?  Simple. The man believes that the Bible, and therefore God, says that marriage is between a woman and a man, and that if we redefine marriage, we are inviting God's judgement.  Again, I assert that he has a right to believe that way.  And I don't think that believing that way makes him a hateful homophobe.  In fact, I know many Christians who feel this way, and while I think that they're wrong, I know that they are kind and loving people.  They're just believing what they were taught, and they don't know how to see outside that box.  They don't believe that they're even allowed to.  

So, my position on the matter remains the same.  I'm still going to eat at Chick-fil-A.  I'm going to support the hardworking employees who need their incomes to help their families, some of them likely identifying as LGBT themselves.  Occasionally, I'll probably invite my gay friends to come along and eat with me, and I'm sure they'll be greeted and served in the same open and welcoming way that I've always been treated every single time I've entered a Chick-fil-A restaurant.  My husband and I are always impressed at the standard response to any request we make of a Chick-fil-A employee... "It's my pleasure!".  And they always seem to genuinely mean it as well.

Speak up, show love, and educate.  <3


~Bonnie