Chick-fil-A tries to put out political fire over anti-gay marriage stand
BY FRAN SPIELMAN Sun-Times Media July 26, 2012 11:41PM
Lauren and Steven Silich at their Chick-fil-A Loyola Water Tower In-Line Restaurant. | Stanley Leary photo
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Updated: August 28, 2012 6:22AM
The owner of Chicago’s only Chick-fil-A restaurant said Thursday she hires and serves gays “with honor, dignity and respect” and invited Mayor Rahm Emanuel to discuss the controversy created by the company president’s stand against gay marriage.
One day after Emanuel joined Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) in blocking Chick-fil-A’s plan to expand in Chicago, Lauren Silich, owner and operator of the fast food chain’s store at 30 E. Chicago, tried to avoid having the gay marriage controversy cost her business. “I would challenge anyone to see any discriminatory action by any Chick-fil-A anywhere, let alone in Chicago,” Silich said. “What was said are the personal beliefs of our CEO. But it has nothing to do with how we run our business in Chicago. It doesn’t translate into any discriminatory action.” If Emanuel takes her up on the invitation, Silich said the mayor will see a restaurant that counts “a lot of gay employees” among its 97-member workforce and serves gay and lesbian customers with dignity and respect. “I just want him to experience Chick-fil-A on the local level. …I just want him to have a 360-degree perspective on Chick-fil-A. I think he’s looking at it from a very national level. I would encourage him to look at it on the local level as well,” she said. Silich said her family has “deep Chicago roots” that includes city workers. Her husband, Steve, is a Chicago Police officer. “We’re real people. We both grew up here. We’re dedicated to serving our community — and that means everyone, regardless of what their beliefs or lifestyle orientation is,” she said. Asked whether she believes it’s fair or legal for the mayor to block Chick-fil-A from expanding in Chicago, Silich said, “I don’t know what they can and cannot do. All I can do is challenge him to visit me on a local level. I’d love to sit down with him and talk through my business. He’d find we do a lot for the community. We’re very involved in our employees’ lives.” She added, “I would just challenge people — before they go and make assumptions or boycott, talk to me. Experience our staff and our restaurant before making assumptions.” Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy was quoted last week as saying he was “guilty as charged” for supporting, what he called the “biblical definition” of marriage as between a man and a woman. “We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that,” Cathy was quoted as saying. Appearing on the Ken Coleman Show, Cathy was further quoted as saying, “I think we’re inviting God’s judgment when we shake our fist at him, you know, (saying), ‘We know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage.’ And I pray on God’s mercy on our generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude to think that we would have the audacity to try and redefine what marriage is all about.” Cathy’s comments have infuriated gay rights activists across the nation, prompting their political allies to take a stand against the company. Boston Mayor Thomas Menino has said Chick-fil-A “doesn’t belong in Boston” because of Cathy’s discriminatory stance. On Wednesday, the tag team of Emanuel and Moreno joined the chorus, citing Cathy’s anti-gay views, and made it clear they are determined to block Chick-fil-A from expanding in Chicago or opening its first free-standing store in Logan Square. “Chick-fil-A’s values are not Chicago values. They’re not respectful of our residents, our neighbors and our family members. And if you’re gonna be part of the Chicago community, you should reflect Chicago values,” Emanuel said Wednesday. “What the CEO has said as it relates to gay marriage and gay couples is not what I believe, but more importantly, it’s not what the people of Chicago believe. We just passed legislation as it relates to civil unions and my goal and my hope…is that we now move on recognizing gay marriage. I do not believe that the CEO’s comments…reflects who we are as a city.” If Chicago is determined to block Chick-fil-A’s expansion, there are apparently plenty of takers. Lombard Trustee Peter Breen wants to declare Aug. 1 “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” to open the western suburb’s arms to the fast food chain specializing in chicken sandwiches. “Opposite the intolerant ‘values’ espoused by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, our values in Lombard are pro-business, pro-jobs and pro-freedom. We uphold the constitutional rights of free speech and freedom of religion of our residents and our business people alike,” Breen wrote in a press release. “Lombard is open for business. If Chicago is going to expel outstanding businesses like Chick-fil-A because of their leaders’ deeply-held beliefs on issues of public importance, we will invite those businesses to invest and bring their economic benefits to our community.” Breen noted that both the U.S. Constitution and Illinois law prohibit government officials from discriminating “based on a person’s sincerely-held religious beliefs.” He added, “We have a word for religious intolerance in this country: bigotry. And, in this case, it’s illegal.” The Chick-fil-A controversy marks the second time in recent months that Emanuel has used his vast governmental powers to block political dissent. Earlier this year, the mayor cut off negotiations on a $300 million plan to renovate Wrigley Field in anger over the conservative politics of Joe Ricketts, the billionaire patriarch of the family that owns the Cubs. Emanuel was furious at Joe Ricketts for working with high-profile Republican strategists on a $10 million plan to resurrect the Jeremiah Wright controversy against President Barack Obama.
