Principal Refuses Chick-fil-A Meal for Teachers to Show ‘Respect to Our LGBTQ Staff’

A principal in New Orleans, Louisiana, opted out of a free Chick-fil-A lunch for his teachers to avoid offending LGBTQ staff members.

Dr. Steven Corbett, who is the principal at Lusher High School, said in a statement he does not believe Chick-fil-A exhibits the right attitude toward members of the LGBTQ community.

“Out of respect to our LGBTQ staff, we have chosen to not serve Chick-Fil-A at an employee lunch. The #1 rule at Lusher is to ‘Be Kind’ and we live this motto every day,” he said.

“Chick-Fil-A has been politically outspoken about its views, and we feel it is not part of Lusher’s culture of kindness and community.”

Reports said Friday’s catered lunch was supposed to be provided by the College Football Playoff Foundation (CFPF), but once Corbett informed the organization of his decision, a spokesperson for the CFPF said food from another restaurant would be served.

“[We are just] glad teachers will have a good lunch tomorrow,” spokesperson Tony Fay commented.

On Thursday, WDSU reporter Travers Mackel tweeted a video of Corbett speaking about his decision to refuse the free lunch:

“We felt that, you know, anytime there’s an organization that is anti-LGBTQ and has efforts to infringe upon their rights, we thought it was important to make sure that we were supporting and standing up for our community at that time,” Corbett said.

In a statement to Fox News, a Chick-fil-A spokesperson said the restaurant’s top priority is making everyone feel welcome.

“We are a restaurant company focused on food and hospitality and have no political or social agenda. Our priority is on providing a welcoming and respectful environment for our guests and Team Members,” the statement concluded.

On September 20, Breitbart News reported the fast-food outlet had doubled its sales despite protests against the restaurant in cities across the country.

“Now, Chick-fil-A is the third-largest fast-food chain after only Starbucks and McDonalds. There are only 2,400 Chick-fil-A restaurants compared to more than 14,000 Starbucks locations,” the report said, adding that “In a 2018 survey, Americans teenagers ranked the chicken-based franchise as their favorite fast-food chain, stealing the top spot from Starbucks.”