The chicken restaurant takes its first big step toward corporate convergence:
Chick-Fil-A said on Monday that it has stopped funding two Christian charities after coming under fire in recent weeks from LGBTQ activists. The fast-food chain’s foundation has donated millions of dollars to The Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Both organizations have a history of opposing same-sex marriage.
Chick-fil-A said it no longer funds the organizations.
“We made multi-year commitments to both organisations and we fulfilled those obligations in 2018,” a spokeswoman for Chick-fil-A told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, adding the company would focus its giving on “education, homelessness and hunger.”
When reached by CNBC, the company declined to comment further.
The Atlanta-based company has faced criticism in the past for its charitable donations and CEO Dan Cathy’s public comments opposing gay marriage. As Chick-fil-A expands outside of its stronghold in the southeastern U.S., activists have put pressure on the company.
This echoes the convergence of NASCAR. Forsaking the existing audience in favor of chasing one that they will never find.