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Officials in Texas's second-largest city say the chicken chain is not welcome at their airport because of its antigay donations.
City Council members in San Antonio signed a new concession agreement for their airport Thursday that dropped a planned Chick-fil-A because of the company's continued anti-LGBTQ policies and practices. The officials were specifically responding to a report this week that the company donated nearly $2 million to antigay organizations in 2017.
City Councilman Roberto Trevino spearheaded the effort to ban the Georgia-based chain from San Antonio International Airport.
"With this decision, the City Council reaffirmed the work our city has done to become a champion of equality and inclusion," Trevino said, according to Fortune. "San Antonio is a city full of compassion, and we do not have room in our public facilities for a business with a legacy of anti-LGBTQ behavior."
Trevino said the airport is where visitors get their first impression of their city. "Everyone has a place here, and everyone should feel welcome when they walk through our airport," Trevino said, according to San Antonio NBC affiliate WOAI.
Chick-fil-A officials responded to the decision by San Antonio:
"This is the first we've heard of this. It's disappointing," the company's statement reads. "We would have liked to have had a dialogue with the city council before this decision was made. We agree with Councilmember Trevino that everyone is and should feel welcome at Chick-fil-A. We plan to reach out to the city council to gain a better understanding of this decision."
Seven years after the company's CEO said those who support same-sex marriage "shake their fist at [God]," the company has made nearly no advances when it comes to LGBTQ inclusion. The company continues to fund anti-LGBTQ causes, including a youth group that bans "homosexual activity." Chick-fil-A has also declined to add nondiscrimination protections for its LGBTQ employees. It has a zero on the Human Rights Campaign's annual buyers guide.
