The Chick Fil A Flap

[sodascouts]

It's no secret that the owner of Chick-fil-A is a Serious Business Southern Baptist. The guy expressed his opinion in an interview in a Christian magazine. It's not like he set fire to a gay couple's house or lynched a gay man ala the KKK, refused to serve gay people, refused to hire them... he just expressed his opinion. You don't have to like it, but it's his right.

I find it highly disturbing that some governmental officials apparently feel free to bar people from doing business based on their perfectly legal private opinions and donations. You can use the rhetoric of "hate group" to apply to "Focus on the Family" if you choose, but it's a legal organization. Last time I checked, people were free to give their money to legal organizations without fear of reprisal from the government.

If you don't want to go there, fine. However, denying this man the right to do business because of a socio-political belief he holds - a belief which is perfectly legal and indeed aligns with the law as it currently stands in most of the country - is wrong in every way.

Think of it this way. What if you have an ultra-conservative mayor in a very conservative town who proclaims that he's going to block Home Depot from opening a franchise due to the fact that its owner donates to pro-gay marriage groups? Would that be OK?

Let's do a "plug in the manipulative rhetoric," tweaking the Boston mayor's phrasing to show what it would be like on the other side. "You can't have a business in the city of [UltraConservativeTown] that discriminates against a [traditional family-friendly] population. We're a [traditional] city, we're a city that's at the forefront of [support for the traditional family]... If [Home Depot] needs licenses in the city, it will be very difficult — unless they [change] their [stance]." How about the Chicago mayor? "[Home Depot] values are not [UltraConservativeTown] values. They disrespect our fellow neighbors and residents."

Would anyone here be cool with that?

When this whole "the Southern Baptist owner of Chick-fil-A opposes gay marriage - GASP - SHOCK" started, I shrugged it off. Of course he does. So what? Those who don't want to support his establishment don't have to.

It's only when these mayors started coming out and saying they're going to block him from doing business that I took note. This precedent cannot be established. If it is, where does it stop? Are mayors going to go through each business owner's tax records to ensure that he only gives his money to "acceptable" groups (which begs the question, "acceptable" to whom)? And those who don't hold the "acceptable" views or donate their money to "acceptable" groups have to pack up and leave town? Since when is this OK in America?