HuffPo writer incapable of comprehending how “queer” people can eat at Chick-fil-A

[Alben Barkley]

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/lgbtq-eating-chick-fil-a_n_5b1fb4cee4b09d7a3d770c81

Article’s a couple years old but someone just shared it on Facebook and I’m laughing my ass off reading it.

Some highlights:

For some strange reason I still don’t fully understand, some queer people and their friends and families began eating at Chick-fil-A again and are still eating there.

I’d venture a guess that Cathy’s somewhat conciliatory yet ridiculously inadequate non-apology and the company’s (totally bogus) promise to stop donating to anti-LGBTQ groups (while it may have ceased funding some groups, it’s certainly still bankrolling others) may have made some people feel justified in returning to the chain. People can be disturbingly indignant and defiant when faced with giving up their beloved chicken sandwiches.

When Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey was called out earlier this week for tweeting about eating at Chick-fil-A during Pride Month, I was shocked to see how many queer people and their allies not only didn’t care but went out of their way to defend the fast food chain.

Excuses I’ve heard for continuing to eat at Chick-fil-A range from a nonchalant dismissal of the issue (“In the grand scheme of things, eating there isn’t really that big of a deal and we have bigger problems to worry about”) to an all-or-nothing paradigm (“I can’t possibly avoid all of the problematic companies out there, so why should I worry about this one?”) to a simple admission that the siren song of the company’s kitchens has proven impossible to ignore (“I know I shouldn’t eat there but it’s just too good not to!”).

To all of these flimsy justifications, I say, “Bullsh**t.” If you care about queer people ― or you yourself are queer ― you have absolutely no business eating at Chick-fil-A. Ever. It’s really that straightforward.

Am I saying Chick-fil-A and everyone who works for it is evil? Of course not. The corporation has done a lot of good and even donated food to volunteers giving blood in the wake of the Pulse nightclub massacre (though, ironically, most gay men weren’t allowed to participate in that charitable effort).  But none of its generosity changes the fact that the chain has taken and continues to take an anti-queer stance and still donates large sums of money to anti-queer groups.

Ultimately, if you’re going out of your way to find a reason to continue to patronize Chick-fil-A, you might want to examine why you need to expend so much energy to do so.

No one likes to hear that they’re doing something wrong ― or that they can’t have something that brings them immense pleasure ― but that’s still exactly what I’m telling you.

He seems literally unable to understand why someone might disagree with his stance, not prioritize a chicken boycott over more pressing issues, or how his demanding, frankly authoritarian attitude (you MUST do what I say!) could turn people off.

This article sums up why so many people can’t stand so many liberal/left “activists.”

[courts]

i agree but idk why you put queer in scare quotes

[John Dule]

My high school paper unironically had higher journalistic standards than the Huffington Post.

[Statilius the Epicurean]

So disappointed that LGBT activists picketed the Chick-fil-A they opened in the UK out of business. I want my waffle fries.

[7,052,770]

Every gay Mississippian I know loves Chick fila

[Orwell]

I've never actually met someone who hated Chick-fil-a for political reasons, I'd understand not liking their chicken, but I really enjoy it.

[Santander]

My gay friends tell me the hate makes the chicken taste better.

[Obama-Biden Democrat]

Every gay Mississippian I know loves Chick fila

You can be gay and not be too woke to love some good Southern food.

[Mr. Smith]

My high school paper unironically had higher journalistic standards than the Huffington Post.

As did mine....even on April Fool's Day when that stuff was aping The Onion.

[Damocles]

If you don’t like chick-fil-a, don’t buy their products. It’s really that straightforward.

[Cokeland Saxton]

I avoid Chick-fil-A for this reason

[John Dule]

My high school paper unironically had higher journalistic standards than the Huffington Post.

As did mine....even on April Fool's Day when that stuff was aping The Onion.

If I had ever submitted an article with a headline that included the phrase "AND TWITTER'S RESPONSE WAS PERFECT," my journalism teacher would've beaten me senseless with a yardstick.

[DINGO Joe]

My high school paper unironically had higher journalistic standards than the Huffington Post.

As did mine....even on April Fool's Day when that stuff was aping The Onion.

If I had ever submitted an article with a headline that included the phrase "AND TWITTER'S RESPONSE WAS PERFECT," my journalism teacher would've beaten me senseless with a yardstick.

Clearly leaving you unprepared for the real world of internet clickbait.  Hide in your ivory tower.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Put me down for "all-or-nothing paradigm". I know "no ethical consumption under capitalism" is a thought-terminating cliche, but it has the saving grace of being true. I've got enough on my plate just trying not to buy things from Amazon!

Regardless, there are only four Chick-fil-As in my entire state, none less than forty minutes' drive away from me, and I don't like fried chicken very much anyway, so I've never been to one and don't intend to.

[lfromnj]

Wasn't chick fil a one of those groups funding the group that called for executions in Africa ? I don't care about a group opposing gay marriage really but the former is more dark.

[afleitch]

I ate it, did my gay penance and was really underwhelmed by it. I had better chicken elsewhere in St Augustine.

[Boobs]

Every gay Mississippian I know loves Chick fila

You can be gay and not be too woke to love some good Southern food.

Why would they eat at Chick-fil-A then?

[Alben Barkley]

Chick-fil-A is actually delicious IMO, but there are other fried chicken chains only in the South that are even better, such as Zaxby’s and (my favorite) Raising Cane’s.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Wasn't chick fil a one of those groups funding the group that called for executions in Africa ? I don't care about a group opposing gay marriage really but the former is more dark.

The founder and original owner did fund a lot of horrible groups like that as well as ones endorsing conversion therapy, but he died a couple years ago and though his son that took over is also a very socially conservative Southern Baptist he put an end to funding those type of groups (possibly just because of the negative publicity though.) However he still funds more mainstream evangelical groups (like Fellowship of Christian Athletes) that openly oppose same-sex marriage and call homosexual behavior as sinful, and so that's risen controversy again with things like San Antonio trying to ban Chick-Fil-A from their airport food court after renovation.

Personally I take the same position as a point Jon Stewart once made while he was The Daily Show host, if you want to raise a fuss about Chick-Fil-A's position on same-sex marriage, but also affiliate with the Catholic Church or do any type of work with them in the political realm (such as attending the Al Smith Dinner)...then yeah you're a hypocrite. Chick-Fil-A perhaps still deserves condemnation as do the evangelical groups they still fund, but there's a double standard here that politicians engage in simply because opposing Chick-Fil-A is an easy performative way to look good on something that's of little consequence.