Chick-fil-A accused of going ‘woke,’ critics threaten boycotts

WASHINGTON (TND) — Chick-fil-A was trending on social media Tuesday after the popular fast-food chain announced its commitment to “Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion,” which is often abbreviated to “DEI.”

Conservative critics were quick to pounce on the news, claiming the restaurant chain had “gone woke.” Some popular conservative Twitter accounts even floated the idea of boycotting Chick-fil-A over the news, with one poll receiving tens of thousands of ‘Yes, boycott’ votes so far.

We have a problem. Chick-Fil-A just hired a VP of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. This is bad. Very bad,” Joey Mannarino, a conservative “political strategist” who runs a Twitter account with over 165,000 followers, wrote on Monday night. “I don’t want to have to boycott. Are we going to have to boycott?”Chick-fil-A has gone woke,” popular conservative political commentator Ian Miles Cheong said on his Twitter feed early Tuesday morning. “DEI is literally wokeness. You can dress it up in nice language that appeals to your Christianity or sense empathy but in practice it always boils down to the same SocJus nonsense that is destroying every industry and institution.”

Chick-fil-A names Erick McReynolds its “VP” of DEI on its website page titled “Committed to being Better at Together.”

On that page, the fast-food company quotes its founder, Truett Cathy, who “believed that ‘a great company is a caring company,'” adding that Chick-fil-A’s “Corporate Purpose” is “to glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us” and “to have a positive influence on all who come into contact with Chick-fil-A.”

Chick-fil-A restaurants have long been recognized as a place where people know they will be treated well,” McReynolds is quoted saying on the webpage. “Modeling care for others starts in the restaurant, and we are committed to ensuring mutual respect, understanding and dignity everywhere we do business. These tenets are good business practice and crucial to fulfilling our Corporate Purpose.”

Many online critics have been questioning Chick-fil-A’s commitment to “glorify God,” with some saying the fast-food company had “bowed to another god” by focusing on DEI.

Some even told Chick-fil-A that it was “supposed to be a Christian company” and that it “should be caring what God thinks above all.”

Dear, @ChickfilA: By adopting a corporate DEI policy, you are committing the sin of partiality (James 2:9),” wrote pastor Darrell B. Harrison on Twitter. “DEI is inherently discriminatory as it mandates that you make subjective judgments about people on the basis of external characteristics and attributes, as opposed to making such judgments on the basis of merit.”DEI is discrimination—period,” Harrison continued. “You can use all the kum-bah-yah language you want (“being better at together”), but as a so-called Christian company there is no way you can justify this policy biblically.”

Other online observers apparently found the DEI criticism to be nonsensical.

Apparently, supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion is anti Christian,” one Twitter user said, tweeting a screenshot of Mannarino’s tweet. “Fascinating take.”

The National Desk has reached out to Chick-Fil-A for comment, but has yet to receive a response. If a response is obtained, it will be added to this article.