Chick-fil-A battered for supporting anti-gay groups; Latest claims flap is over local donation
”All in all it’s a trumped up story…. There are a couple restaurants that are giving us food…. We didn’t even get any money. The food was freely donated to the churches hosting the marriage retreat…. People should applaud institutions that want to strengthen marriage.”
Michael Geer of the Pennsylvania Family Institute speaking with the Christian Post. The Post’s article accuses gay bloggers of getting the story wrong — in part, claiming the blog Good As You had created an online petition, which it did not.
The Christian Post reporter, Stephanie Samuel, does not appear to ask the Pennsylvania Family Institute president about his group’s anti-gay rantings, nor does she address whether Geer plans to block same-sex marriage in that state.
The article claims that Geer is “setting the record straight,” by saying Chick-fil-A is not sponsoring an event titled “The Art of Marriage: Getting to the heart of God’s design.” Yet, two days ago, his PFI website certainly did list Chick-fil-A as a sponsor.
Chick-fil-A does seem to have a history of supporting events hosted by gay rights-hating Christianists. In August, Chick-fil-A was listed as the “Lunch Sponsor” of a Citizens for Community Values event. CCV says it is “officially affiliated” with three of the country’s most anti-gay groups: American Family Association, Family Research Council, Focus on the Family. (Back2Stonewall)
Good As You has followed their original post with audio from a talk show where Greer expresses his anti-gay marriage views.
PFI’s Greer makes the argument that government interest in marriage is primarily for the well-being of children, yet he does not address how heterosexual couples who cannot (or choose not to) bear children are allowed to be married. He seems confused about why people cannot marry whom they choose, likening same-sex marriage to a man marrying his sister or a 4-year-old.
Greer’s homosexual-obsessed argument seems to be blinding him to that fact that civil marriage is primarily a financial contract — a legal agreement between two unrelated adults — designed to create a new family unit (a new next-of-kin relationship) in which the pair will receive certain regulated benefits while jointly sharing one another’s obligations.
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