Chick-fil-A says it will no longer donate to two Christian charities following years of LGBTQ protests. The fast-food chain's foundation previously donated millions to the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA).
While both organizations have been criticized for opposing same-sex marriage and promoting other anti-LGBTQ policies, it’s the Salvation Army who has “refreshed” their stance in recent years. The FCA writes in its employee application that "neither heterosexual sex outside of marriage nor any homosexual act constitute an alternative lifestyle acceptable to God."It also states on its website that "marriage is exclusively the union of one man and one woman."
The company has revealed that in 2018, the Chick-fil-A foundation donated $1.65-million to the FCA and $115-thousand to The Salvation Army. Such donations have prompted a number of demonstrations at various Chick-fil-A locations as well as a nationwide boycott. Where will they give now? Chick-fil-A says the company will now give to a number of organizations working exclusively in education, homelessness and hunger – though they still leave plenty of room for faith-based organizations to be included.
- Going forward, Chick-fil-A says it will work with Junior Achievement USA,Covenant House International and donating $25,000 local food banks. "No organization will be excluded from future consideration — faith-based or non-faith-based,"Tim Tassopoulos, president and chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A, says in a statement. In other words, that leaves open the opportunity that it could donate to foundations that might hold anti-LGBTQ views in the future.
- For that reason, the LGBTQ organization, GLAAD, is wary. “Chick-fil-A investors, employees and customers can greet today’s announcement with cautious optimism,” the organization says in a statement. “But should remember that similar press statements were previously proven to be empty.”
Source:CNN