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Chick-fil-A is arguably best known for three things: its juicy chicken sandwiches, its employees perpetually chipper attitudes, and its long history of donating to charities with anti-LGBTQ stances.
But one of those things seems to be changing next year. The fast-food chain is changing its charitable giving approach in 2020 and says, in an oblique way, that it will no longer donate to such organizations.
The Chick-fil-A Foundation will instead take a more focused giving approach, Chick-fil-A announced in a Monday press release. The foundation has set aside $9 million for 2020 that will be split between three initiatives: promoting youth education, combating youth homelessness, and fighting hunger. Those funds will be distributed to Junior Achievement USA, Covenant House International, and local food banks in cities where the chain opens new locations.
The release didnt outright say the biggest change to Chick-fil-As philanthropic giving plan: In 2020, the chain wont give any money to charities that take anti-LGBTQ stances. In an interview with real estate publication Bisnow, however, Chick-fil-As president and CEO Tim Tassopoulos made it clear that the companys new donation strategy is at least partly related to the constant backlash Chick-fil-A has faced over its donations.
No organization will be excluded from future considerationfaith-based or non-faith-based, Chick-fil-A President and COO Tim Tassopoulos said in a statement to VICE.
Fans Call Out Dababy For Supporting Chick
DaBaby finds himself on the wrong end of fan criticism once again.
On Wednesday morning , the Charlotte, N.C. rapper posted a video to his Twitter account of himself lovably caressing and sniffing a bag of Chick-fil-A food. Shortly after, fans began bashing the rapper because of rumors the fast-food restaurant chain donated to President Donald Trump over the last few years.
For his part, DaBaby didn’t appear to know why people were angry with his post. Upon recognizing the backlash, he followed up with this tweet: “Damn I aint know niggas couldnt eat chic fila during the protests .” He aslo tweeted, “Yall be bored as hell on this bitch huh ?”
Plenty of people on social media tweeted him claims that the chicken spot supports Trump. “They gave millions to trumps campaign,” wrote one Twitter user. Another wrote: “Is that a Trump donation Mr. Baby?”
While many put DaBaby on blast for not realizing Chick-fil-A’s supposed Trump connections, some just suggested that him posting the video was tone-deaf given the large-scale protests that have spread around the country after the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who died after a police officer pressed their knee against his neck for over eight minutes on May 25.
“Real talk, we dont want to see your chick fil a on the TL right now,” wrote one Twitter user. “Its a lot going on in the World right now if you didnt know.”
See more tweets about DaBaby showing love for Chick-fil-A in his video for yourself below.
Claim Resurfaced In 2015
In November 2015, PoliceOne, a pro-law enforcement website, reported that employees were wearing the shirts to support law enforcement in Conroe, Texas, referencing an article from the Independent Journal that is no longer available. The story included the same image of the Chick-fil-A employee wearing a blue T-shirt that is now circulating on social media.
The location’s manager told the Independent Journal that “we’re supporting those everyday heroes that protect us.”
The representative for Chick-fil-A told USA TODAY that the manager gave a personal opinion that had nothing to do with discussion surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement in 2015 and they do not now either.
The T-shirt claim with the same image also appeared in July 2016 after a shooting at a Black Lives Matter protest in Dallas, where police officers were killed. The claim that employees were wearing the shirts in support of officers in response to the shooting was debunked by Snopes.
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Big Businesses Including At& t Ge And Amazon Suspend Giving To Gop Group That Sought To Block Electoral College Certification Of Biden Win
WASHINGTONA growing wave of big businesses are deciding to suspend or review their campaign donations in the wake of last weeks riot at the Capitol, with many saying they would stop donating to Republicans who objected to the elections certification.
AT& T Inc. , ConocoPhillips , Dow Inc. , Facebook Inc. and United Parcel Service Inc. were among companies announcing Monday that they are halting or reviewing campaign donations from their political-action committees to lawmakers and political candidates.
Lindsey Graham Backs Chick
Lindsey Olin GrahamMcConnell backs Herschel Walker in Georgia Senate raceAfter 35 years, Congress should finally end the sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaineMcCain blasts Graham for refuting funeral remark about Kushner, Ivanka TrumpMORE threw his support behind Chick-fil-A this week after reports emerged that some students at the University of Notre Dame voiced opposition to the school considering making the chain a part of its on-campus dining.
Students wrote a letter to the schools student-run newspaper published earlier this month, titled Keep Chick-fil-A away, that pushed back against the idea of the chain being offered on campus, citing serious ethical concerns.
The fast-food chain has come under fire in recent years for donations made by its charitable foundation to anti-LGBT groups.
The students wrote that they believe a variety of other restaurants would better fit Notre Dames mission and our student bodys needs, while also calling for student and faculty leaders to stop catering Chick-fil-A at campus events.
The letter in The Observer appears to only have two student signatures. But a second letter signed by students and faculty similarly voicing opposition to Chick-fil-A has racked up nearly 200 signatures, according to Fox News, and has been circulated by a number of conservative media outlets over the past several days.
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Viral Tweet Shows List Of Fast Food Chains That Are Reportedly ‘supporting Trump’s Reelection’
A tweet that lists “companies supporting Trump’s re-election” went viral on Thursday, causing chatter among the anti-President Donald Trump crowd on the internet.
The list includes fast food stalwarts such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s, In-N-Out and Chick-fil-A, as well as chain restaurants like Olive Garden.The call to shun restaurants came after talk of a mass boycott of SoulCycle and Equinox after it was revealed their owner, billionaire Stephen Ross, was hosting a fundraising event for Trump on Friday.
So heres a list of companies supporting Trumps re-election: – Bang- IHOP- Carls Jr.
Costa
The netizen whose real name is Zuriel Sanders told Newsweek Friday, “In my tracking down I noticed a lot of the companies are funding PACS which are directly helping Trump’s re-election or have helped in the past. It’s indirect but I still see it as them supporting his campaign even if it’s indirect you know?”He continued: “And consumers shopping at these places are indirectly supporting his campaign for re-election. Some people think I’m trying to shame them but it’s more me pointing out hey, you’re posting how you don’t like what our admin is doing, but you’re kind of supporting them.”
The tweet was retweeted almost 400,000 times on Friday, including by prominent Trump-critic Chrissy Teigen, who joked that she too would be very skinny in the wake of this list.
Dammit! Imma have to learn to cook.
Costa
Thank You President Trump Chick
How’s that boycott going?
In the two years since Donald J. Trump was sworn in as president, the United States of America has achieved unsurpassed greatness in almost every imaginable category. The economy is surging. Tiger Woods is a Masters champion again, after ending his “Obama drought” on the PGA Tour. Mankind continues to enjoy unprecedented dominance over Earth’s inferior species. And now, thanks to booming sales, Chick-fil-A has become the third-largest restaurant chain in the United States, behind Starbucks and McDonalds.
Chick-fil-A is now the third-biggest US restaurant chain and its sales have tripled in the last decade.
Myles Udland May 8, 2019
Chick-fil-A, which has been the target of a left-wing boycott campaign due to the problematic socially conservative views of its founder, has absolutely dominated the chicken market over the past decade. The chain’s sale have tripled, and its U.S. market share among chicken-centric restaurants has increased from 18 percent in 2009 to 33 percent, while its chief competitor, Kentucky Fried Chicken, has seen its market share fall from 29 percent to 15 percent over the same period. That’s what winning looks like. Congrats on the boycott, libs!
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Trump Spoke With Restaurant Company Ceos About Coronavirus Response
- President Donald Trump spoke with executives of the largest U.S. restaurant companies on Tuesday.
- Participants included the CEOs of Domino’s Pizza, Chick-fil-A, Subway and Restaurant Brands International.
- At least 19 states across the country have mandated that restaurants and bars close their dining rooms amid the outbreak.
President Donald Trump spoke with executives of the largest U.S. restaurant companies on Tuesday about keeping drive-thru options open to feed people and financial support for the industry.
Participants on the call with Trump included the CEOs of Domino’s Pizza, Chick-fil-A, Subway, Restaurant Brands International, Bloomin’ Brands, Yum Brands, Darden Restaurants, Papa John’s, Wendy’s and Raising Cane’s. McDonald’s U.S. president also participated.
The White House said that the executives all committed encouraging customers to use drive-thru, pickup or delivery options in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
One industry executive on the call with the president urged the White House to take action to support small business owners with a fund that would provide cash flow for business owners to remain solvent during the coronavirus pandemic, keep employees on payroll and continue to grow once things stabilize, according to a person with direct knowledge of the call.
In response the president indicated his support, saying that “I think you’re really going to like what we’re doing,” the source said.
Here are the participants:
Lgbtq Groups Are Cautiously Optimistic About The Change
LGBTQ rights groups like GLAAD say Mondays news is a step in the right direction for Chick-fil-A, though they warn the chain is still far from inclusive.
Chick-fil-A investors, employees, and customers can greet todays announcement with cautious optimism, but should remember that similar press statements were previously proven to be empty, Drew Anderson, director of campaigns and rapid response for GLAAD, told The Goods in an emailed statement. 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.
As Andersons statement suggests, Chick-fil-A has promised to cut ties with anti-LGBTQ charities before.In 2012, the Chicago-based Civil Rights Agenda issued a statement claiming that Chick-fil-A had promised to no longer give to anti-gay organizations, such as Focus on the Family and the National Organization for marriage.
Chick-fil-A declined to comment on the matter at the time, instead issuing a boilerplate statement to BuzzFeed News:
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I’m Happy To Boycott Chick
In the chicken sandwich wars Popeyes is the clear choice, but its a mistake to see it, or any corporation, as part of our movement
When you live in a racist society, even something as simple as a chicken sandwich may not be just a chicken sandwich.
The sandwich wars reignited on Sunday when Popeyes reintroduced their popular fried chicken sandwich, in direct competition with Chick-fil-A. The sandwich had been so popular earlier this year that Popeyes literally ran out of chicken.
Its a cultural moment and, for better or worse, it was impossible to ignore how black Twitter virtually exploded in debate over which sandwich was better. Like a lot of progressives, I can proudly say that Ive never had a Chick-fil-A sandwich. The summer launch of the Popeyes sandwich ran smack into my aggressive beach body goals, so I havent had one of those either.
This tension has turned the cultural moment into a political one. For many, that included casting Popeyes as the conquering hero and Chick-fil-A as the evil king in need of dethroning. Theres a clear reason for that: Chick-fil-A is a bad company with immoral politics. Boycotting them in favor of Popeyes is a choice Im happy to make.
There’s A Difference Between Ignorance And Stupidity
There is a tremendous difference between ignorance and stupidity. There is nothing wrong with being ignorant as it is a condition that can be corrected by education. All of us are ignorant regarding many things at different times in our lives hence the expression I was ignorant of the fact until. But once you learn the facts you are no longer ignorant and this education process goes on throughout our lifetime.
The impeachment hearings should have been such an educational moment for congressional Republicans. They, and the American people, heard damning testimony regarding Donald Trumps corrupt attempt to use Americas foreign policy for his personal political aims. Trumps actions set off alarms across the U.S. national security and foreign policy apparatus.
As Trumps lies continue to change, his congressional supporters are forced to update their defense of his corrupt and illegal behavior. In an article published in the Washington Post on Nov 22 titled The 24 defenses Trumps allies have floated on Ukraine and impeachment by JM Rieger, over the last two months Republican lawmakers and Trump allies have floated no fewer than 24 defenses of the president. It is amazing how some lawmakers have moved from the There was no quid pro quo defense to Even if there was a quid pro quo, it wasnt a corrupt quid pro quo to Trump is incapable of a quid pro quo among other excuses.
Michael E. Waters
Elmore
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A Handful Of Restaurant Investors Are Massive Trump Donors
While no current CEOs of major fast-food chains are donating to presidential candidates, some investors and chair members are supporting Trump.
Billionaire Nelsen Peltz is the CEO and founding partner of investment management firm Trian, as well as a long-time donor to Republican politicians. Trian is an investor in Wendy’s and Peltz sits on fast-food chain’s board.
Peltz has donated at least $83,100 to Trump since 2016. In February, Peltz hosted a fundraiser for Trump with reported a $580,600 price of entry.
Stephen Ross is the chairman and founder of RSE Ventures, which has invested in a number of smaller restaurant companies including Momofuku, Milk Bar, and & Pizza. Ross has donated to a number of Republican PACs, and reportedly held a $100,000 a head fundraiser for Trump last year.
Other, lesser-known restaurant companies also have investors or executives who have made significant donations to Trump. These include:
There are also Trump megadonors in the food and beverage business outside of restaurants, such as Ron Cameron, the owner and chairman of poultry company Mountaire and Molson Coors Brewing Company chairman Pete Coors.
