Burger King celebrates Pride by having mascot kiss Ronald McDonald
Poster featuring the kiss celebrated Pride in Helsinki, Finland, with Burger King stating that "love conquers all"
Burger King’s mascot is getting into the spirit of LGBTQ Pride week in Finland by sharing a passionate kiss with archrival Ronald McDonald.
Helsinki’s Pride week runs from Sept. 7-13, albeit in a different format due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, with a mix of real and virtual events.
As part of its sponsorship of the event, Burger King has placed posters across the city proudly touting that “Love conquers all,” and featuring an incredible image of the Burger King kissing Ronald McDonald, mascot of rival fast food chain McDonald’s.
“Burger King has always stood for equality, love, and everyone’s right to be just the way they are,” Kaisa Kasila, Burger King Finland’s brand manager, said in a statement.
“The only instance where it might not seem so is when we’re bantering with our competitor. But we want to be clear — it all stems from the respect we have for them. And we know McDonald’s stands for the values we stand for, too.”
Kasila continued: “The idea behind the painting sprung from our desire to celebrate love in all forms. We thought, what a better way to convey our values than by portraying an all-encompassing kiss between Burger King and McDonald. We wanted to show that in the end, love always wins.”
Burger King parent company Restaurant Brands International’s Global Chief Marketing Officer Fer Machado touted his pride over the poster, as well as Burger King’s 100% score in the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, a measure of the pro-LGBTQ policies and practices of businesses in the United States.
“Proud to see Burger King Finland as the official partner of The Helsinki Pride,” Machado wrote. “Even more proud of our 100% Corporate Equality Index. Congrats to Kaisa from the BK Finland team for such a beautiful execution.”
Proud to see Burger King Finland as the official partner of The Helsinki Pride. Even more proud of our 100% Corporate Equality Index. Congrats to Kaisa from the BK Finland team for such a beautiful execution. @HRC #helsinkipride2020 #helsinkipride #loveconquersall pic.twitter.com/lmQD4Waepz
— Fer Machado (@fer_machado123) September 10, 2020
It’s not the first time Burger King has shown support for the LGBTQ community.
In 2014, it debuted the “Proud Whopper,” a limited edition version of its iconic Whopper burger to celebrate LGBTQ Pride in San Francisco, featuring a rainbow wrapper with “we are all the same inside” inscribed on the inside.
“Burger King restaurants have always been places to eat great tasting food, let your guard down and just be yourself without any judgement,” Machado said at the time.
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