Orem, Utah Chick-fil-A post congratulating gay couple ires conservative media
When an Orem, Utah Chick-fil-A posted a simple congratulations on Facebook, saying “CONGRATULATIONS TO THE HAPPY COUPLE! Dougie & Toby recently got married, and we are so beyond happy for them!” — it triggered a firestorm of backlash from ultra-conservative media. What seemed to many like a gesture of celebration of longtime team trainer Dougie and his husband, Tobyas, instead became a flashpoint with conservative media labeling it a “shockingly woke statement.”
An article, titled “Chick-Fil-A Waffles on Wokeness with Same-Sex Marriage Post and DEI Focus,” by Suzanne Bowdey, editorial director of The Washington Stand, argued that the Chick-fil-A post “flies directly in the face of Scripture,” and pointed readers to Old Testament law: “Leviticus 20:13: ‘If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, … they have committed an abomination.’”
The commentary argued the incident was further proof that the chain is pursuing what it called “LGBT extremism,” and the fact that if in “any location,” even one in a traditionally conservative area, felt comfortable sharing such a message showed that the company “hasn’t weeded out” support for same-sex marriage and related “ideology.”
The Washington Stand is the Family Research Council’s “outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview,” according to its website.
The controversy comes against a backdrop of prior criticism of the chain that the company reportedly stopped donating to longtime Christian charities like the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in 2019, allegedly redirecting funds to groups more aligned with progressive social agendas, such as the Southern Poverty Law Center.
It also notes that, despite its Christian-founded identity, the company continues to employ a vice president for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
The ultra-conservative The Washington Journal later wrote an article titled, “Chick-fil-A Under Fire After Betraying Loyal Customers with Shockingly Woke Statement.”
“One Chick-fil-A franchisee in Orem, Utah (if that sounds at all familiar to you, it’s where Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated) apparently decided that it is a good idea to alienate your core customer base,” the story started, ending with, “And that’s a darn shame.”
Evangelical author Megan Basham posted on her X profile that the story was “Good reporting from Family Research Council’s Washington Stand.”
A Utahn going by “GrayMountain, Heritage Utahn observing the decline of Mormonism’s cultural hearth,” commented that “in Utah… where the highly educated Anglo-Scandi heritage population has taken compassionate conservatism to the extreme of tolerating literally everything,” and “has seen the largest drop in birthrates and the highest increase in youth trans identification of any state other than Indiana.”
“Our governor has made Pride celebrations a mainstay of June for the last 4 years… all with no pushback from top lds [sic] leaders,” he continued. “Even Glenn Beck and Mike Lee have been dead silent on how gay their own church has become.”
Many of the comments to Basham and the original post are supportive of the post, saying it was simply a celebration of a happy couple deserving of congratulations.
“Delightful. Happy for them. And they will have that picture forever. Well done @ChickfilA,” commented X user Libertarian Gandalf.
As for Chick-fil-A corporate, at least one person who complained to them about the post received the following response:
Thank you for contacting Chick-fil-A CARES.
Chick-fil-A embraces all people, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender identity.
Chick-fil-A, Inc. is committed to being Better at Together by embedding Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) in everything we do. We strive to provide a welcoming and inclusive place for everyone. We do this by focusing on Chick-fil-A’s four Corporate Social Responsibility pillars: Caring for People, Caring for our Communities, Caring for Others through our Food, and Caring for our Planet.
To learn more, visit our Giving Back page and our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion page.
