According to a statement on the chain's website, it has appointed Erick McReynolds to serve as vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). McReynolds has been employed by Chick-fil-A since 2007, and was promoted to the position in November 2021 per his LinkedIn page. However, it seemed that news of his promotion was made public just recently.
"Modeling care for other starts in the restaurant – and we are committed to ensuring mutual respect, understanding and dignity everywhere we do business," McReynolds is quoted as saying. "These tenets are good business practice and [are] crucial to fulfilling our corporate purpose."
The restaurant's dedicated DEI page states: "Chick-fil-A, Inc.'s commitment to being 'Better at Together' means embedding diversity, equity and inclusion in everything we do."
According to the Post Millennial, Chick-fil-A elicited controversy when its then-CEO Dan Cathy made a series of public statements that appeared to oppose same-sex marriage. Cathy later became the chairman of Chick-fil-A, which runs nearly 3,000 restaurants in the contiguous U.S. and Puerto Rico.
However, the restaurant slowly turned its back on the same Christian values that made it appealing to conservatives. Chick-fil-A stopped donating money to groups opposing same-sex marriage in 2019. With the recent announcement of McReynolds as VP for DEI, the restaurant has officially gone woke.
Chick-fil-A blasted on social media
When news of McReynolds' promotion as VP for DEI broke out, enraged Americans took to social media accusing Chick-fil-A of "wokeness." They also suggested the possibility of a mass boycott of the company once loved for its chicken sandwiches. (Related: Meet the "woke" rating score prompting brands like Nike and Bud to hire trans influencers for ads.)
Conservative strategist Joey Mannarino wrote: "This is bad. Very bad. I don't want to have to boycott. Are we going to have to boycott?"
He then posted an informal poll asking his 166,000 followers whether a boycott is in order. As of the late afternoon of May 30, a little more than 47 percent of respondents voted in favor of a boycott.
One user expressed hope that Chick-fil-A "will stand by their Christian values" amid the ongoing controversy. Meanwhile, another user said he will no longer be eating the joint's chicken sandwiches from now on.
A third user shared footage of Cathy claiming he had purchased "shoeshine packages" and distributed them to store managers, proving that the once-Christian chicken sandwich joint has already gone woke. According to the clip, the "shoeshine packages" were allegedly meant to remind managers to feel "contrition, humility, shame and embarrassment" for the history of slavery throughout the United States.
The video also featured an "awkward" exchange between the chairman and a Black man on the stage of what appears to be Passion City Church in Atlanta. It showed the Chick-fil-A CEO scrubbing the man's shoes with the brush and hugging him, with an apparent expression of remorse for the history of slavery in America.
Visit WokeMob.news for more stories related to the woke policies U.S. companies are pivoting to.
Watch Martin Brodel talking about Chick-fil-A joining the "woke mob."
This video is from the Martin Brodel channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Americans tell CEOs: Drop the 'woke' and get back to business.
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