After recent confirmation that the fast food restaurant’s president Dan Cathy has used profits to donate millions of dollars to anti-marriage-equality organizations, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn sent a letter to New York University president John Sexton two weekend’s ago asking him to end the school’s contract with Chick-fil-A. The school’s Weinstein Residence Hall food court is the only Chick-fil-A location in the city.
Bronx Councilman Fernando Cabrera, who is also a pastor of a socially-conservative Christian church, issued a statement opposing Quinn’s letter on Aug. 3, calling it an abuse of power and not representative of the entire Council. “Her intolerance of a religious view of traditional marriage is clear and troubling,” he said. “Her disregard for freedom of speech unless she agrees with it is equally disturbing.”
Former City Controller Bill Thompson also questioned Quinn’s actions, saying “The power of office can’t be used to prevent the company from doing business. I could see myself picketing and saying ‘don’t buy here,’ but not using governmental powers to shut it down.”
Cabrera commended Mayor Bloomberg who called a ban of Chick-fil-a based on political views “inappropriate.” Other mayors including those of Boston, Chicago and D.C. have made it clear Chick-fil-A is not welcome in their cities.
When Cathy spoke out about the controversy he explained, “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.”
Former Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee organized “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” on Aug. 1 encouraging people to eat at their local Chick-fil-A to support Cathy’s right to free speech and “affirm a business that operates on Christian principles and whose executives are willing to take a stand for the Godly values we espouse.”
On Aug. 3, marriage equality supporters retaliated by staging same-sex “kiss-ins” at Chick-fil-A restaurants. Starbucks and Equally Wed, a gay and lesbian wedding magazine, also organized “National Marriage Equality Day” on Aug. 7, during which people were encouraged to support Starbucks and other LGBT-friendly companies to show their stance on the issue.
Quinn stood by her choice to write the letter when speaking to reporters last week, but made the distinction between her action and actually trying to legally ban the company.
“I don’t want businesses that hold discriminatory views and feelings, but I don’t have any legal recourse or reason to block this company.”
A pro-business candidate in the upcoming 2013 mayoral race, Quinn said she only wishes to defend gay rights: “We are asking Mr. Cathy to reconsider, open up his mind and really overcome his homophobia and stop investing his money in efforts to limit the rights of LGBT Americans.”
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A politician asking an institution of higher learning to voluntarily end an economic relationship with a company that actively campaigns against the legal rights of New York residents (the politician’s constituents) is not abusing power.
And why does The Bronx have so many homophobes and so much nepotism in our politics, anyway?
If companies are people and people vote with dollars then the destination of the restaurant’s donations are open for public debate. It very well should be an issue as to where peoples’ hard-earned money goes after the chicken goes down their gullet. This issue has made our little feathered friend the modern martyr as Chick-fil-A laughs all the way to the bank. Watch the poultry be nailed to the cross and pierced by the spear of destiny at the hands of those devious cows on my artist’s blog at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2012/08/holy-rollin-poultry-on-cross-chick-fil.html
It is obvious “Not fooled” is unaware Speaker Quinn recently helped NYU passed a big rezoning. This so call “voluntarily” is not so voluntarily as you may think. The Speaker has tremendous power regarding funding,rezoning, and much more. She has a big stick. If she was voluntarily asking, why did she use the city council stationary?
Most New Yorkers agree with Councilman Cabrera. Are you saying that 87% of all New Yorkers are homophobic, since they agree with Councilman Cabrera? Why is it any time someone disagree with gay rights people that they have to be demonized? It is getting tiresome hearing these types of accusations. No one takes it serious anymore. It is not the job of an elected official to tell an University to stop doing business with a franchise, because the president hold some political view different than the elected official. What’s next, abortion, save the whale, progressive or conservatives views? Councilman Cabrera thank you for standing for freedom of speech!
If you have arguments with what the Bible states ask Jesus into your heart and let him open your eyes to what God has for you not with what people bound by the ways of the world. Christians don’t hate gay people they hate the sin. God bless
“I don’t want businesses that hold discriminatory views and feelings, but I don’t have any legal recourse or reason to block this company.” ??? Hello people ITS IS A FAMILY OWNED CHRISTIAN BUSINESS! Does it bother you that much that a private organization has the freedom and rights to believe what it wants? It doesn’t ban gays from eating, and my manager when I worked there was in fact a lesbian whom understood completely the organization was for Heterosexual marriage, yet she was still a well treated employee who adored the way Chickfila treats its employees. Why can’t people understand this isn’t an Anti-gay movement company. It is a christian company with christian beliefs. Freedom of religion and speech seems to be out the window nowadays. And the biggest target is always Christianity. If gays owned Chickfila and didnt believe christian beliefs would Quinn stand up and say that Chickfila shouldnt be at this campus then? I doubt it. Get a grip people and get over it. Just don’t eat there if you don’t agree with Christian values. Simple as that, but trying to change a family belief or private organizations belief more impeding on the rights of others, than it being a Christian company and saying we don’t believe in gay marriage.
The corporate owners can have any personal view they want.
When they use their profits to campaign against the legal rights of New Yorkers, that becomes a different matter.
I don’t care if 87% of New Yorkers think gays should not have equal rights. There was a time when a majority of Americans thought blacks should not have equal rights, either.
Discrimination is wrong, regardless of which minority group you choose to attack.
I’m very sorry if you disagree with Christine Quinn, but she was representing her constituents. That is what she was elected to do. Unlike Cabrera, who is apparently using his position to campaign against equal rights, Quinn took a position to protect the legal rights of the citizens of New York.
We live in a country with religious freedom. You are free to practice whatever misreading of the Bible you choose, but you cannot impose your interpretations on the legal rights of others.
If you don’t like gay marriage, don’t get gay married. But please stop trying to determine how somebody else should live their life. How is it even any of your business?
I can’t help but notice that the Bible is far more concerned about adultery than homosexuality. It is quite explicit that divorce and remarrying is a sin. So where is the righteous indignation by these churches toward the adulterers? Where are the campaign contributions and legal campaigns against the laws that allow people to sin by getting married after divorcing their first spouse?
Why do these sinners (according to the Bible!) sit in the pews as full participants in the congregation of intolerance to equal rights for gays, whose sins are no worse according to the Bible? Why do you accept that some people have a legal right to sin, while denying it to others?
The ONLY logical answer is that you and your church are homophobic. That is not demonizing anybody. That is a simple, basic, factual conclusion.
I guess “love your neighbor” doesn’t apply in your mind, when your neighbor is somebody different you’ve chosen to dislike? You’re free in this country to pervert your religion however you choose… You just can’t deny legal rights to others.