Chicago Chick-fil-A will share a building with Black and trans-led LGBTQ+ group

A Chicago LGBTQ+ group was "blindsided" by the news that a new Chick-fil-A would be opening right below them.

Brave Space Alliance, a Black- and trans-led community organization in Hyde Park, recently said that they were only made aware of the new location planned for the floor beneath them when local news outlets reported on its opening. CEO Channyn Lynne Parker told Windy City Times that no one from the company has yet reached out to engage with their group.

“We respect the right of businesses to operate, but we also have a responsibility to our community to ensure that they feel safe, valued and supported,” Parker said. “And Chick-fil-A’s track record creates a level of understandable apprehension among the people Brave Space Alliance serves.”

Related:Is Chick-fil-A still anti-LGBTQ+? Here’s its full record

The company most notoriously has drawn criticism and boycotts over its millions in donations to various groups with anti-LGBTQ+ ties, including over $1.7 million in 2009 alone. The Chick-fil-A Foundation donated $1.8 million to three anti-LGBTQ organizations in 2017, $1,653,416 going to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which enforces a "sexual purity" policy that bars "homosexual acts."

Chick-fil-A gave another $1.65 million to the FCA and $115,000 to The Salvation Army in 2018, before announcing in 2019 that it would cease its donations to the companies, and that its foundation would only donate to a select few organizations. However, Tim Tassopoulos, president and chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A, said in the announcement that "no organization will be excluded from future consideration — faith-based or non-faith-based."

Chick-fil-A's profits have continued to fund efforts to block the Equality Act, which would update federal laws to protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in employment, housing, education, credit, and more. Former CEO Dan Cathy, who said in 2012 that he opposed marriage equality, was revealed by The Daily Beast in 2021 to be among several Christian billionaires who gave millions to the National Christian Charitable Foundation (NCF), which has spearheaded the blockage of the Equality Act.

The chicken restaurant has also made headlines going back over a decade for multiple cases of discrimination against LGBTQ+ employees. Several queer workers told Huffpost in 2012 about the "depressing" comments they've received from customers and coworkers alike. Almost a decade later in 2022, a transgender woman sued the owner of a franchise in Georgia for firing her over her gender identity and ignoring repeated reports of sexual harassment. The woman settled with the company in 2024.

“I would encourage them to engage with our community in a meaningful way, listen to our concerns and create some concrete steps toward inclusivity,” Parker continued. “I really want to hear whether or not they’re going to advocate for policies that help with marginalized communities.”