Chick-fil-A Faces Protests As Backlash For Donating To Anti-LGBTQ Organizations

Chick-fil-A Faces Protests As Backlash For Donating To Anti-LGBTQ Organizations

by kaitlinesposito ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

LGBTQ activists set up a protest outside the grand opening of the first Chick-fil-A international location in Toronto, Canada this week amid a donation scandal and the company’s support of anti-LGBTQ beliefs.

The protests have stemmed from donations made by Chick-fil-A to multiple organizations that openly oppose same-sex marriage, some of them being accused of anti-LGBTQ discrimination as well.

The biblical values of Chick-fil-A’s company have been controversial for years now, but with these statements and donation histories coming to light, the brand is in hot water with activists, being “cancelled” by the LGBTQ community, in the method of boycotting and protesting.

Blogger Josh Israel discusses Chick-fil-A’s tax records and anti-LGBTQ beliefs in a recent post. He reports that the brand donated 1.6 million to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Salvation Army, according to newly released tax findings, which are both companies known for their homophobic policies and beliefs.

This is not the first clash that Chick-fil-A has had with the LGBTQ community, however, since the CEO has time and time again expressed his beliefs against same-sex marriage, and now his brand is being boycotted in several locations in the US.

Two airports in the past few months have wanted to take Chick-fil-A out of their food courts after word of their anti-LGBTQ stance spread. Buffalo Niagara International Airport as well as the San Antonio International Airport have made the decision within two weeks of each other in April 2019.

The effects of these statements and beliefs of Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy is spreading to college campuses as well. At the University of Kansas , faculty are arguing against having the restaurant on campus.

They believe that the beliefs of the company will make LGBTQ students and faculty feel uncomfortable and discriminated against, same as the protestors in Toronto, saying:

“The culture of Chick-fil-A fosters hate and discrimination on multiple levels,” the Sexuality & Gender Diversity Faculty and Staff Council said in a two page letter addressed to university leaders, accusing them of being “more concerned about money and corporate sponsorship than the physical, emotional, and mental well-being of marginalized and LGBTQ people”.

My Influencers

My Influencers

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For the purpose of this post, here is some information about the influencers and sources I use to find relevant topics and information regarding my blog and the events I write about! You can find these sources both in this post, and on the blog roll widget underneath the calendar on my page.

  • Dave Rubin – The twitter account of political commentator Dave Rubin, where he discusses current events in politics, sometimes addressing political correctness.
  • Dawn Ennis – A writer for Forbes who has recently focused on boycotting and avoiding politically incorrect things, a subject matter that goes hand in hand with call-out culture.
  • Joei Chan – The work page of the Global Head of Content for Linkfluence, Joei Chan, who has a whole section of the page dedicated to societal trends, including a fascinating article on public shaming that I can use for background information of my topic.
  • Josh Israel – The twitter account of Josh Israel, which focuses on the impact of world event’s on businesses, something that can go hand in hand with canceling, since it is considered a “societal boycott”.
  • Kelly Wynne – The twitter account of Kelly Wynne, a writer for Newsweek that addresses businesses unfair actions as well as the injustices still facing our society, topics I can definitely relate to with my blog.
  • Lauren DeLisaColeman – The twitter account of Lauren DeLisaColeman, an influencer who discusses societal trends in pop culture, and addresses wrongdoings that must be acknowledged. This account is a terrific source of information for my blog.
  • Wayne Dupree – The work page of author Wayne Dupree, who discusses politics, but in a way that includes societies actions against those who believe in certain things, which can be considered a direct form of “cancel culture”.
  • Sean Coughlan – The twitter page of Sean Coughlan, a journalist and author who focuses on the education system as well as politics occasionally, which I plan to use to have access to news stories involving those fields.
  • Takis Pappas – A twitter account to Takis Pappas, that is dedicated to discussing the idea of populism, which is the concept that the elite pushes aside the thoughts of the group as a whole, which can coincide with my topic of cancel culture.
  • Think Process Blog (Josh Israel) – The page of writer Josh Israel, who focuses on politics (in his blog posts), something that I can use as a source for my stories on society’s reaction to certain political actions.
  • Washington Examiner Blog (Julio Rosas) – The work page of Julio Rosas, a breaking news reporter who writes about events in the political field globally, something that I can try and use to expand my blog to the world and not just the United States.
Prince Harry Called Out For Hypocrisy Surrounding Private Jets and a New Environmental Initiative

Prince Harry Called Out For Hypocrisy Surrounding Private Jets and a New Environmental Initiative

by kaitlinesposito ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had recently been spotted taking singer Elton John’s private jet when they went to stay at his home in Nice, France. This was the royal couples 4th trip on a private jet in 11 days, a feat that contrasts the environmental initiative he has been traveling to talk about.

While flying private jets give off less CO2 than commercial planes, taking 4 trips within two weeks demonstrates the inefficiency of private air travel. The Prince then took to the podium to address the people after he was called out, launching his global initiative to encourage more environmentally friendly travel: Travalyst.

This is not the first stand that Prince Harry has made about the environment and how we can help. His passion about the environment seems to be overshadowed by his use of private air travel, since there have been multiple scenarios defying his beliefs.

He was rumored to have delivered a speech during the infamous “Google Camp”, which housed some of the “most brilliant minds”, including some of the most famous people in the US right now, and around the world. Ironically enough, Google chartered the Prince from London to Italy in a helicopter to attend the event.

The Prince, while an important attendee at the camp, was one of several “climate supremacists” to travel to the Google Camp by private transportation like helicopters, yachts and private jets. Some of society’s most elite minds, along with other A-list celebrities traveled to Sicily, Italy to, ironically enough, discuss the threat of climate change. The article goes on to discuss the event (and the hypocrisy behind it) saying:

"There were more than 114 private jets reported to have been expected to arrive at the conference that’s topic was global warming. Some estimates suggest that up to 100,000 kilograms of CO2 could be expelled into the air during the journeys of that many private jets."

“There will likely be discussions about online privacy, politics, human rights, and of course, the environment, which makes it highly ironic that this event requires 114 private jets to happen,” a regular attendee said.

https://twitter.com/WinstonCovfefeB/status/1168899951092490243?s=20

You see the internet constantly showing graphic videos of the toll that society is taking on the environment, and the things we can do as a race to fix the damage that has been done.

The real question, though, is why we haven’t called out those who are constantly taking private planes to travel, while they encourage people to “do their part” for the environment.

For example, celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, who prides himself on his passion for the environment, had taken a private jet to the Google Camp, along with several other trips he’s made. Yet somehow, society seems to “pick and choose” who they call out and who they don’t.

https://twitter.com/ChuckEChaves/status/1168899822558044166?s=20

What do you think, should we expect celebrities to practice what they preach? Or is it our responsibility to try and call out those who are hypocritical in their actions versus their words?

Chappelle’s Standoff Against Cancel Culture

Chappelle’s Standoff Against Cancel Culture

by kaitlinesposito ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

As social media has become more and more popular in recent years, cancel culture has emerged as a new societal trend. Like it or not, the things that may have been said in the past can now be used to affect your future.

Cancelling is basically a “cultural boycott,” said Lisa Nakamura, a professor at the University of Michigan who studies the intersection of digital media and race, gender and sexuality, “It’s an agreement not to amplify or give money to”.

What this is basically saying, is that if you’ve said something bad, it will come out, it’s just a matter of where people find it and when they release it. Some believe that it is good to call someone out on the mistakes they’ve made if they were wrong, but others think that it is unfair to use someone’s past words against them years later, because people grow and change

In his newest Netflix special “Sticks and Stones”, famous comedian Dave Chappelle uses a segment of his act to address cancel culture, and the lengths people go to be a part of it.

**WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE**

https://twitter.com/RyanGirdusky/status/1166047874523848704?s=20
Chappelle does an impression of audience members today in this clip.
“That’s why I don’t be coming out doing comedy all the time because y’all n****s is the worst motherf*ckers I’ve ever tried to entertain in my f*cking life. Goddamn sick of it. This is the worst time ever to be a celebrity. You’re going to be finished, everybody’s doomed!” Chappelle goes on to say.

Chappelle has been known for his controversial acts, but going against a societal trend that was supposedly created “for good” may not have sat well with all viewers. At the end of the day, he was just saying what other comedians have been thinking.

Another celebrity comedian to face the wrath of canceling was Kevin Hart in late 2018. Homophobic and insensitive tweets from Hart’s account in 2011 were leaked to the public right when it was announced that he was to host the Oscars. 

 “I wouldn’t tell that joke today, because when I said it, the times weren’t as sensitive as they are now. I think we love to make big deals out of things that aren’t necessarily big deals, because we can,” he said in an interview with Rolling Stone “These things become public spectacles. So why set yourself up for failure?”

Hart then took to his Instagram to issue another statement on the situation, where he refused to apologize, but rather explain that he has learned, grown and that people need to “stop searching for reasons to be angry,” .

Other comedians have been called out the same way as Hart, one being the famous female comedian Sarah Silverman. When she was casted for a part in a movie, a picture of her in blackface from an old act resurfaced, and the role was taken back. Although the sketch was originally supposed to be a part of a routine on racism, an edgy and shocking sketch at that. The article talks about Silverman taking a stand on the subject of cancel culture, saying:

“Silverman, admittedly, has a fair point - cancel culture comes across as disproportionately harsh, the “cancellers” often ignoring context for the sake of action, but critique of cancel culture tends to caricature the phenomenon; Silverman seems to be greatly overstating the danger of the situation, perhaps feeling defensive after losing an opportunity," (Di Placido, 1).

The society we live in, as Kevin Hart stated as well as Silverman and Chappelle, is much more politically correct than it has been in the past. The comedy sketches shown then and now alone are prime examples of this. Even Jerry Seinfeld, one of the most well-known comedians out there, believes that the political correctness of today is intervening with the field.

In 2015, Colin Cowherd with ESPN Radio had an interview with Jerry Seinfeld, where Seinfeld stated he would not perform on college campuses due to the backlash he may receive on his “lack of” PC (political correctness). Cowherd explains that he had interviewed other comedians like Chris Rock, who had said the same thing about not wanting to perform at colleges in an interview with New York. He said, 

 “I stopped playing colleges, and the reason is because they’re way too conservative,” Rock said in the interview. “Not in their political views — not like they’re voting Republican — but in their social views and their willingness not to offend anybody.”

So what do you think, did Chappelle hit the nail on the head with his impression of today’s audience and the concept of cancel culture? Going against a large group of media users in a special released on one of the top streaming platforms in the country was a bold choice, but for a comedian as fearless and controversial as Chappelle, it was just another day at the office.