In a recent interview with Bisnow, Chick-fil-A President and Chief Operating Officer Tim Tassopoulos declared that America’s favorite chicken restaurant would no longer be donating to charitable organizations deemed “anti-LGBT.” Tassopoulos stated, “There’s no question we know that, as we go into new markets, we need to be clear about who we are. There are lots of articles and newscasts about Chick-fil-A, and we thought we needed to be clear about our message.” As a result of this decision, Chick-fil-A will no longer donate to numerous charities it has long supported, including the Salvation Army, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), and the Paul Anderson Youth Home — all organizations deemed “anti-LGBT” by the Left and Leftmedia for their commitment to traditional Christian principles.

To put it bluntly, it appears that the leadership at Chick-fil-A is retreating under pressure from the Rainbow Mafia’s “anti-LGBT” cudgel. While it’s entirely understandable why a company whose primary objective is to sell tasty chicken sandwiches with top-quality service would want that to be its principal identity, the truth is that, since its founding, Chick-fil-A has represented much more than its product. Chick-fil-A stands at the forefront of the culture war as a Christian fast-food chain, and that is precisely because founder S. Truett Cathy chose to put the convictions of his Christian faith ahead of profits, stating their company mission is “to glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us.” Among other things, this is why Chick-fil-A stores are closed on Sundays.

This is also why the company’s founders boldly did what few corporations dare — support the historic context of marriage as between a man and woman, as upheld by every major religion worldwide. And this explains why Chick-fil-A has long been a target of the Rainbow Mafia, as it represents faithful Christianity in the business world. The problem with the present controversial decision goes beyond a surrender to the Left’s demands on sexuality; it’s a violation of Cathy’s founding commitment to never compromise his Christian principles in favor of profit. Sadly, it appears that concerns over profit and growth are exactly what motivated this capitulation.

Ironically, this decision may end up costing Chick-fil-A that very profit through conservative backlash. CEO Dan Cathy must set the record straight as to whether there has been any misrepresentation of the reasoning behind this decision or he risks losing some of his company’s massive Christian customer base. Chick-fil-A has a long-standing record as a principled company, but this decision is at best, a colossal PR failure.

Further, Chick-fil-A’s decision to end donations to the Salvation Army, the FCA, and the Paul Anderson Youth Home also disparaged the good name of these faithful Christian organizations. In effect, the company has affirmed the leftist SPLC’s assertion that these charities are “haters.” It also reinforces the false standard that the only way Christians can love people is by embracing and celebrating their sinful condition and behavior.

Finally, appeasing the woke mobsters only leads to further demands of capitulation to their destructive gender disoriented orthodoxy. Case in point: Immediately following this announcement, one of the nation’s most invasive homosexual advocacy groups, GLAAD, declared that Chick-fil-A must now disavow any association with faith-based “hate” groups. Tassopoulos opened this door, and it will be difficult to close.

(Read Mark Alexander’s followup column on this issue, “Memo to Chick-fil-A from the BSA” noting, “There is a lot to admire about Chick-fil-A, but good, faithful people can make poor decisions.”)

(Updated.)