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Rider University, a small private college in New Jersey, is making waves for rejecting students’ request to open a Chick-fil-A franchise on campus.
The school polled students last spring to ask what restaurant chain they would like to see open on school grounds. But when they chose Chick-fil-A, administrators decided they didn’t want to “eat more chikin.”
The university sent out another poll this fall, but Chick-fil-A wasn’t on the menu.
“We sought to be thoughtful and fair in balancing the desire to provide satisfying options for a new on-campus restaurant while also being faithful to our values of inclusion,” administrators wrote in a letter to the Rider community.
Related: Liberals have launched a boycott of another fast food outlet. It’s going to fail too.
“The choices in this situation, like in so many others, were imperfect. They challenged us to reflect on our values and consider what kind of community we want to provide for those who live and learn at Rider University.”
The liberal boycott against the fast food chicken company was spawned by a blogger upset that a local franchise had donated a couple dozen sandwiches to an anti-LGBTQ group. When it was revealed that the corporate office had also given money to anti-LGBTQ groups and the CEO started spouting off against marriage equality, the battle lines were drawn.
Quicker than an evangelical Christian can yell “Boycott Starbucks for Jesus!”, progressives started boycotting the chain. Just as quickly though, the right wing began a campaign to support the corporation.
Activists and politicians quickly claimed success during the Chick-fil-A boycott, but never actually said what they accomplished. The company continues to donate to anti-LGBTQ causes and hasn’t suffered any financial loss. Instead, after conservatives flocked to the fast food restaurant, the boycott actually increased their profits.