The chicken sandwich became a political statement for a day as
supporters of the Chick-fil-A president's stance against gay marriage caused
traffic jams at the fast-food chain's restaurants nationwide.
Baking in the Southern California summer heat,
lines of Chick-fil-A fans snaked around the eateries and down streets Wednesday
as patrons ignored gay rights advocates armed with "Cluck Off" signs
and vuvuzelas urging them to eat elsewhere.
Crammed drive-throughs caused traffic jams on
nearby streets, often requiring attendants to direct cars. At several locations
in Orange County and Long Beach, lunchtime crowds swelled to more than 100
people.
Similar crowds converged across the country at
Chick-fil-A, which has more than 1,600 branches. In Madison, Ala., police were
called to maintain order. Some customers waited outside Chick-fil-A restaurants
carrying 8-foot crosses or dressed as Superman, according to users on
micro-blogging site Twitter.
Former presidential candidate Rick Santorum
tweeted about his Chick-fil-A lunch. "OK leftists go crazy," he
wrote.
The huge crowds were responding to a call from
another former presidential candidate, Mike Huckabee, who had dubbed Aug. 1 as
Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day after the chain's president, Dan Cathy, publicly
spoke out against same-sex unions two weeks ago.
Cathy's comments, as well as revelations that the
chain has donated millions of dollars to anti-gay marriage groups, have sparked
a furor from several big-city mayors, actors Mia Farrow and Roseanne Barr,
Muppets creator Jim Henson Co. and thousands of consumers who have pledged to
boycott the chain.
Rival burger chain Wendy's ordered a North
Carolina franchisee to take down signs he had posted at dozens of locations
that read "We Stand With Chick-fil-A." In a statement, Wendy's said
it is "proud to serve customers of varied races, backgrounds, cultures and
sexual orientation, with different beliefs and values."
On Wednesday, popular West Hollywood bar the Abbey
unveiled its new sandwich, the Chick-For-Gay, which it plans to serve to its
largely gay and lesbian clientele through the November elections.
Still, more than 600,000 people RSVPed on Facebook
for Huckabee's appreciation event. He wrote on the social networking site that
he was "incensed at the vitriolic assaults" on the chain, which he
described as "a great American story that is being smeared by vicious hate
speech and intolerant bigotry from the left."
Huckabee, now a radio show host, posted photos on
Facebook of his visit Wednesday to a Chick-fil-A in Destin, Fla.
Not all customers eating at Chick-fil-A sympathize
with Cathy's stance against same-sex unions. Many said they were backing the
company's right to free speech. Others arrived to voice their displeasure with
liberal values in general.
"I'm not against gay rights by any means, but
I think this guy is getting a bad rap," Beaumont resident Ed Vatter, 57,
said over a plate of chicken nuggets and waffle fries at the Chick-fil-A in
Laguna Niguel.
"Plus," he said, "the food's pretty
good."
He was one of more than 150 customers who jostled
for seats as employees shouted out orders and people waited 30 minutes in lines
that stretched out the door at lunch time.
Retirees Susie Kendall, 78, and her husband, Tom,
82, had never been to a Chick-fil-A before, but they swung by to show support
for Cathy's beliefs.
"We're afraid America is doing the political
thing instead of the right thing," said Susie, a homemaker, of the shift
toward gay marriage acceptance. "Political correctness can be done away
with as far as I'm concerned."
Outside, a single protester, Laguna Niguel
resident Tamara Lindner, 47, wore a shirt with a "No H8" logo and
referred to people who patronize Chick-fil-A as "sheep-le."
"This is the silent protest," she said.
Chick-fil-A, a privately held company in Atlanta,
refused to comment on the effect of the appreciation day on its sales.
In a statement, it noted that the event "was
not created by Chick-fil-A" but said it appreciated "all of our
customers and are glad to serve them at any time."
The company, which operates under Christian
beliefs that include being closed Sundays, reiterated its "simple"
goal of providing "great food, genuine hospitality and ... a positive
influence on all who come into contact with Chick-fil-A."
It sent out a similar statement after Cathy was
quoted in a small Christian publication, the Baptist Press, that the chain was
"guilty as charged" of supporting "the biblical definition of
the family unit."
The story quickly went viral. Soon, Cathy went on
the Ken Coleman talk show, a syndicated radio program, and reiterated his
stance.
"I think we are inviting God's judgment on
our nation when we shake our fist at him and say, 'We know better than you as
to what constitutes a marriage,'" Cathy said. "I pray God's mercy on our
generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude to think that we have
the audacity to define what marriage is about."
In more gay-friendly Hollywood, dozens of
Chick-fil-A critics crowded outside one restaurant waving signs as diners
munched on the outdoor patio.
Even People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
showed up to protest the treatment of chickens before slaughter.
Police officers hung out by the counter, watching
for disturbances. A large rainbow flag fluttered from a Jeep that was blaring
its horn. The small parking lot and the drive-through lane were overflowing,
causing a traffic backup on nearby Sunset Boulevard.
One customer, Roy Simmons, 60, said he ditched his
habit of packing a lunch so he could cheer on Chick-fil-A's right to an
opinion. He also opposes gay marriage, he said.
"With the left, if you don't toe their line
and say what they want you to say, they shut you down as a hater, a bigot or a
homophobe," said the La Crescenta construction manager.
But protester Brian Hamilton, an actor, said
Cathy's comments had alienated many consumers — himself included.
"We are well aware of the repercussions of
hate speech when it is directed at [gay and lesbian] people," said
Hamilton, 48, a West Hollywood resident who said he is gay. "It's not good
business. It's not smart."
Gay rights sympathizers said they will gather
again Friday outside Chick-fil-A locations for National Same-Sex Kiss Day,
where they plan to publicly embrace in so-called kiss-ins to draw attention to
the company's donations to anti-gay marriage groups.
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