Emory University students may no longer be munching on Chick-fil-A sandwiches and waffle fries this summer.
A student advisory committee has recommended that the Atlanta-based restaurant chain, which has been on campus for 29 years, be excluded when the campus’ main food court is redesigned.
Emory insisted that the tentative decision to drop the restaurant has nothing to do with comments Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy made last summer in indirect reference to gay marriages.
Efforts were made Wednesday to reach Chick-fil-A for comment on Emory’s decision.
Cathy’s warning that the nation is “inviting God’s judgment” because it is trying to “redefine” traditional marriage was viewed by some as an attack on the lesbian and gay community. The comments triggered a firestorm of social media and public protests on college campuses, including Emory’s, and at the chain’s restaurants — both opposing and supporting Cathy’s views.
University officials expressed their disappointment over the views, and in December the Student Government Association passed a resolution opposing Chick-fil-A’s presence on campus.
Michael Sacks, co-chair of the student Food Advisory Committee at Emory, said the decision to exclude the restaurant had nothing to do with Cathy’s comments. “It’s really not politically motivated,” Sacks told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Another co-chair, Karoline Porcello, however, reportedly told the campus newspaper Emory Wheel that a contributing factor was that the restaurant didn’t live up to campus life and student values.
In statements following the fallout over its president’s comments, Chick-fil-A said it has a “culture and service tradition” to treat everyone “with honor, dignity and respect — regardless of their belief, race, creed, sexual orientation or gender.”
Emory said no final decision on excluding Chick-fil-A has been made. “A strategic review process is continuing with final plans for a new lineup of food vendors expected to be announced this summer,” the university said in a statement.
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