Jasmine Beach-Ferrara on Chick-fil-A

Alumna Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara (fiction, ’01), current director of the Campaign for Southern Equality, gets at the real issues behind the recent Chick-fil-A controversy in a recent article for the Huffington Post.

Still, as gay minister in the South, I’ve been puzzled by the national media frenzy surrounding this story. Here in the South we are, sadly, used to hearing anti-LGBT rhetoric — from business leaders, politicians and preachers. It’s hardly news, it’s hardly surprising and it’s hardly ever the whole story.

As a CEO and private citizen, Mr. Cathy has the right to voice his beliefs on gay marriage (or any topic). And people have the right to disagree or agree and make consumer choices accordingly. Chick-fil-A is not the issue here. The real issue is that in 29 states, Mr. Cathy, or any employer, has the right to fire employees simply for being gay or lesbian. In 34 states, employers can fire people because of their gender identity...[Keep Reading]…