The fast-food chain Chick-fil-A announced Monday that it plans to stop donating to charities with anti-LGBT views in 2020, Bisnow reports. The Atlanta-based company came under intense scrutiny after Chief Executive Dan Cathy was quoted in 2012 by the Baptist Press as saying that he was “guilty as charged” in his stance against marriage equality. While Cathy’s comments sparked petitions and boycotts, Chick-fil-A still went on to become the third-largest U.S. fast-food chain, with sales reaching $10.5 billion this year. “There’s no question we know that, as we go into new markets, we need to be clear about who we are,” Chick-fil-A President and Chief Operating Officer Tim Tassopoulos said in an interview with Bisnow. “There are lots of articles and newscasts about Chick-fil-A, and we thought we needed to be clear about our message.” The Salvation Army, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and the Paul Anderson Youth Home are among the charities that Chick-fil-A says it will stop supporting. In the new year, the chain’s philanthropic arm will focus on three initiatives, each with an accompanying charity: education, homelessness, and hunger.
