I wasn’t planning to blog about the whole Chick Fil A thing. But let’s face it, the olympics only hold so much entertainment, right?
Here are my thoughts, in no particular order.
I’m tired of the anger and hate.
Do people have a right to be upset? Heck yes they do. Are there some people going overboard attacking the other side? Yup, of course there are. Are some people making broad generalizations that attack gays or christians or cows or vegetarians? Unfortunately, yes.
My thing is, own your feelings, own your anger, and channel it into something productive that helps your cause.
It’s not just a first amendment issue.
Hate speech is not the same as free speech. The thing is, Cathy didn’t use hate speech. He shared his beliefs, which IS protected by the first amendment. The thing that sucks majorly is that he’s funding hate organizations on behalf of his company. Hate is not cool, people. There’s a reason our laws protect people from hate crime and prohibit hate speech.
It’s bullshit that this will have economic impact for those without a voice.
According to the Yale School Of Management, only about 10-15% of Chick-fil-A locations are licensed. The rest are privately owned franchises. I find it hard to believe that these small business owners signed up for having one mouthpiece speak for all of them on such a hot issue. Whether Cathy really does speak for all of them or not, the fact remains that he’s the figurehead of the company and that the general public will assume he represents all Chick-fil-A locations.
I’m glad he said it.
You know why? Because it got people thinking. It got people challenging their beliefs and deciding whether they want to accept the traditional way of thinking. People I’ve never heard utter a word of support for different causes are banding together to fight what they deem as injustice. I don’t like the context, but I do think it’s great that people are talking about it, becoming educated, and hopefully making a difference.
End rant.
It makes me sad that I can’t get my family to understand that, for me, its not about “free speech.” For me is it 100% about the fact that the chicken sandwitch they are eating “in support” is paying for the corporation to help other countries pass laws that put people to death for their sexuality.
AND, I feel bad for the homosexual people who work at chick fil a (because some do) who are listneing to hateful comments every day now. -sigh-
Hate is not cool sums it up pretty well.
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It’s a chicken sandwich. Most of Americans CAN do withOUT it in their diet as it’s not a necessary commodity if they feel so strongly against it lol. Also, the homosexuals protesting this, and the straight people protesting this are guilty of the same hate they are alleging the Pro-Chick Fil A individuals of. Showing hate to show that hate is wrong makes them guilty of hate full-circle.
^^Protesting something is *not* the same as spreading hate.
Personally, I don’t even think of this as having anything to do with “free speech”. I think people should know what they are supporting by buying a product from a certain company. So many people seem to just turn their heads, and pretend it has nothing to do with them or isn’t their fault. I think you’re directly responsible for what a company does if you are supporting that company…
Right on. Protesting is also a First Amendment right, and it doesn’t mean that you hate the people/company/organization that you’re protesting—it means that you disagree with them. And I absolutely agree that you should support the companies whose views reflect yours. It’s the same reason why I buy some organic brands over their mainstream counterparts, and why I have boycotted certain stores in the past. I “vote” with my feet and dollars, so to speak.
I believe in supporting companies that provide products and services that can give our consumers honest information and choices.
I did not know that Chick-fil-Agave money to hate organizations! I just thought that Cathy was stating his beliefs! I am against hate organizations that promote discrimination to anyone! Hate speech is so bad on so many levels!
Thank you for raising awareness that this is not a freedom of speech issue. Whether you like what he says or not, he has every right to state his beliefs.
The issue is all about what he is doing with his corporate dollars, and whether or not you are ok patronizing a company that supports the organizations that they do. I, personally, am not.
Although the context of this entire debate is just plain sad. It is good that people are talking. I can only hope they are listening as well. Too many people have something to say but not enough are willing to listen to the other side and become educated about the topic they are going on about.
I believe that he should be able to voice his opinions on the matter. However, to take profits directly from the company and use them to spread hate is another story completely. That is truly disgusting.
All of those around me knows that there is one word I don`t use very often and that word is *HATE* Hate is such a strong feeling and the total opposite of love. People say that when they love they are willing to do anything to make that person knows he/she is loved. The same goes to hate. If you hate someone, you are willing to do whatever it takes to make that person`s life miserable.
If I hated someone, I would`ve gone insane and killed that person. But I don`t. They are some that we don`t get a long, we have different views and beliefs…we will have to deal with it.
Sigh…I am glad I have the right of free speech.
For me, when he said he is against my family (which he said by saying he only supports the traditional family blah blah blah), that is hate speech. I don’t expect people that don’t deal with what I do on a regular basis to understand, but I also don’t want them to tell me that I’m being hateful by standing up for my rights because I’m not. I’m glad people are making a stand. I don’t hate him. I’m not hateful about it. I boycotted CFA years ago when I found out where his $$ was being donated, and never looked back, but I’m happy that the mainstream media picked up on it (finally). I feel sorry for the gay employees at CFA. They’re having to deal with “I hate the gays, too” on a daily basis because of this jerk.
I also agree with most of your post, I’m glad it was made public! It’s getting a LOT of people talking, and it’s definitely helped me find out who my real friends are.
Thank you for raising awareness that this is not a freedom of speech issue. Whether he likes what his words or not, he has every right to state his beliefs.
The issue is all about what he is doing with his corporate dollars, and whether or not you are patronizing a company that supports the organizations that they do.
On Chick-fil-A “appreciation” day, I had several status updates in my head that I wanted to post to facebook, even though I knew they would incite some serious debate. I was angry about the whole thing and *really* tired about the whole “Free speech in Amurika but only for Christians, YEAH!” attitude that is SO prevalent in rural Texas. But then I realized that my status updates weren’t coming from a nice place, either…so I instead just posted an uplifting quote from Ellen.
You do a good job of pointing out what the real issues are here.
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If a well-known figure makes a statement about anything, then he/she has to be willing to suffer/enjoy the consequences
I for one think the whole thing has gotten blown way out of proportion. And, thanks to the media once again they bring an issue to light to devide us. It’s time we stop listening to these fear mongers and stop giving them what they want. Personally I think anyone should be able to say anything. It is free speach.
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It is quite the debated topic. One quote I liked that fit well with the whole discussion is this:
“Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someones lifestyle, you must fear them or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate”
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YES! YES! YES! Agree wholeheartedly with everything you said!
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