All that said, I never wanted to take a side on the issue. Still don't, to be honest. Though I haven't visited a Chick-Fil-A restaurant in a number of months, it hasn't been because of the company leaders' stances on gay rights or religion. Beliefs and religion are on a slippery slope when it comes to their places in the corporate world anyway. Many times over, I tried to put myself in the place of the people slighted by the company's words and actions. What if the CEO had said, "Down with the Blacks!" or what if he had announced that they were donating money to organizations for the purpose of barring women from the right to drive a car? I'd be upset in either case. I'd probably stop eating there with more purpose, but still I didn't want to take a side on the issue. Besides, Chick-Fil-A is first and foremost a company. It's a company whose presence has brought a lot of good things to the country and to my home state of Georgia. Still, the sandwich and the waffle fries should have nothing to do with anyone's personal beliefs.
It's taken me a long time to get here, but finally I've arrived at a conclusion, and it is this: I do not care what one man thinks. I wouldn't try to make the Chick-Fil-A CEO "see the light" any more than I would explain to an old racist woman that I'm not going to steal her good china. I am not directly affected by the policies, but once I see my own friends profoundly upset by the unjust beliefs of that one man, the sandwich and the waffle fries are no longer worth it. In layman's terms: since it means so much to people I like and respect, I'm finished. So long, Chick-Fil-A. Until we meet equally.
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