Chick-fil-A pushes anti-LGBTQ+ agenda in Uganda
Chick-fil-A helps export homophobia and there is no end in sight.
Closed on Sundays and led by an anti-LGBTQ+ owner, it’s no secret Chick-fil-A is certainly one of the most openly Christian fast-food franchises out there. They are also donating to the WinShape foundation, established by a Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy, which is closely linked with the National Christian Foundation. This foundation has a long history of funding projects in Uganda that oppose LGBTQ+ rights, specifically with the intent of making homosexuality punishable at the legislative level.
This isn’t the first time the internet has caught Chick-fil-A donating to anti-LGBTQ+ foundations. In fact, they’ve been caught again and again – even after announcing in 2012 that they would stop donating to “anti-gay organizations.” They also released a statement saying, “We have no agenda, policy or position against anyone,” but seeing that they’ve continued partnering with the National Christian Foundation, it clearly shows it was an empty promise.
There is a clear problem with these donations, though. The National Christian Foundation’s work is an act of neo-colonialism. Currently, this foundation is pushing their morals, religion and political views onto Uganda by providing church services and groups that promote an anti-LGBTQ+ agenda and further criminalizes homosexuality in a country where homosexuality is already widely viewed as being unnatural.
These foundations put an entire community at further risk of oppression and persecution simply for existing. It is problematic that a United States restaurant franchise is partly funding a foundation that spreads hate to other countries, especially at the legislative level.
Additionally, these foundations are causing more harm than just attempting to make homosexuality illegal. In Uganda, people are being murdered for their views on LGBTQ+ rights, such as activist Brian Wasswa, who was killed in their home in early October.
Uganda’s well-known “Kill The Gays” law was modified to life in prison for acts of homosexuality before the bill was passed in 2014, but it has been a topic of discussion in the following years, as Uganda’s citizens and political leaders have continued to push for more violent punishment to openly LGBTQ+ people in the country.
It should be clear by now that this form of neo-colonialism is destructive, and Chick-fil-A has been complicit in spreading anti-LGBTQ+ beliefs in Uganda, even after publicly claiming to be non-political and promising to stop these donations.
Chick-fil-A has lost the little credibility it had and cemented its Christian reputation. Those who enjoy a chicken sandwich now and then should assess their values and reconsider supporting a company that has shown open hostility and hate toward a marginalized group that is already under attack around the world.
