In 1946, Truett Cathy opened The Dwarf Grill, a small restaurant in Atlanta that would eventually become the first Chick-fil-A. Known for its signature sauce, fried chicken and waffle fries, the brand skyrocketed in popularity after an incredibly successful marketing campaign featuring the slogan “Eat Mor Chikin.” Now consisting of over 3,000 franchises, the company has grown exponentially, generating nearly $17 billion in sales in 2021. 

In 2024, the Cathy family became the eighth wealthiest family in the United States, with a 33.6 billion dollar fortune. The family donates large amounts of money to various organizations nationwide through the franchise’s organization, Chick-fil-A Inc.

In 2012, controversy arose surrounding the organization’s philanthropy when Dan Cathy, the Chief Operating Officer of Chick-fil-A and Truett Cathy’s son, commented on the organization’s priorities. 

“We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit,” Cathy said. “We know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the Lord, we live in a country where we can share our values and operate on biblical principles.” 

Cathay’s comment garnered much attention from the public, and the response to the quote was immediate. Later that month, Boston’s mayor, Thomas Menino, made a statement addressing the comment, telling the company they were not welcome in the city. 

“There is no place for discrimination on Boston’s Freedom Trail and no place for your company alongside it,” Menino wrote.

Menino was not the only one who issued a response. The Jim Henson Company, which had previously provided Chick-fil-A with children’s toys for kid’s meals, released a statement on Facebook in 2012. 

“Lisa Henson, our CEO, is personally a strong supporter of gay marriage and has directed us to donate the payment we received from Chick-fil-A to GLAAD,” the company wrote.

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) also advocated for “National Same-Sex Kiss Day” to be held nationwide at Chick-fil-A restaurants.

Cathy Renna is the Communications Director for the National LGBTQ Task Force. In response to Cathy’s controversial 2012 statement, the National LGBTQ Task Force reported on the matter and called for the passage of the Equality Act. Cathy’s statement put Chick-fil-A Inc.’s views into the spotlight and highlighted a broader issue with purchasing power, Renna said. 

“For years now, queer consumers, our allies and our families have had to pay attention to how companies behave and where they’re putting their dollars, so we can decide where to put ours,” Renna said. “Capitalism is not a simplistic operation. It’s really important to educate yourself and then figure out who the corporations that stand in good values and in partnership are. Those are the ones that folks will want to support more.”

Public response to Cathy’s comment was not all negative, however, as many anti-LGBTQ Christians supported the statement. In late July 2012, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee made a Facebook invitation attempting to create a “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day,” which over 40 thousand people accepted. 

“Let’s affirm a business that operates on Christian principles and whose executives are willing to take a stand for the Godly values we espouse by simply showing up and eating at Chick-fil-A on Wednesday, August 1,” Huckabee wrote in a post.

The company has made its religious values known through more than just online statements. In 2013 — the first full year Chick-fil-A Inc. was registered as a tax-exempt non-profit — the organization donated more than $866,000 to The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). The organization requires chapter leaders to commit to “sexual purity,” later defining the term as a subscription to the Bible’s teachings on appropriate sexual expression and heterosexuality. The narrative was easy to sell, with the public assuming religious affiliation due to the company’s closure on Sundays. 

LGBTQ+ activists called attention to the issue by organizing boycotts, with many across the country opposed to financially supporting a company donating to anti-LGBTQ+ groups. Homosexual couples also made efforts to kiss in front of Chick-fil-A stores and bring pride-themed items to the restaurants. 

In 2013, the FCA received the largest sum of funds of any Chick-fil-A recipient, garnering significant public backlash. However, the second and third highest recipients of donations from Chick-fil-A Inc. — The East Lake Foundation, at $330,000, and Junior Achievement, at $289,000 — had no relation to anti-LGBTQ groups. 

Along with the FCA, however, Chick-fil-A has consistently spent money on groups that support diversity and inclusion, such as the United Negro College Fund and the Latin America Association. Still, left-wing groups focused solely on the socially conservative messaging of the FCA.

Dan Cathy was not reprimanded for his comments online. Instead, he was promoted to CEO the following year and held the position from 2013 until 2021. Chick-fil-A’s donation priorities changed significantly during this period. In 2018, the company gave $825,000 to the FCA, but in 2019, the group’s funding ceased completely. 

Chick-fil-A responded to public concern to the extent that right-wing political pundits targeted the organization for its compliance. Conservative activists like Joey Mannarino, Charlie Kirk and Ian Miles Cheong all spoke out against Chick-fil-A’s “woke” DEI efforts. 

Chick-fil-A’s website includes its commitments to valuing difference, ensuring equal access and creating a culture of belonging. This policy derives from their company purpose: “To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come into contact with Chick-fil-A.”

Chick-fil-A has experienced significant backlash regarding donations from so-called extreme leftist and right-wing views regarding donations. The business itself, however, has seen little financial consequence from its political standpoint. Chick-fil-A is the third-largest fast-food establishment, only behind Starbucks and McDonald’s. The company never saw deteriorated growth due to its political views, with consistent returns throughout the late 2000s. 

“I would like to think that nothing’s a lost cause, but I would also say that there’s a tremendous amount of work that they need to do,” Renna said. “It needs to be more than performative, and it needs to be inclusive of investment in our community.”

The Jim Henson Company declined to comment.

Chick-fil-A did not respond to multiple requests for comment.