Loving their deep fried bigotry
by digby
I honestly don’t have a problem with this. They choose to support a business owned by someone who shares their beliefs. I think those beliefs are odious and disgraceful and I have no respect for people who are hostile to civil rights, but it is within their rights to be jerks.
But it’s within my rights not to patronize such businesses as well. I have never been to a Chik-fil-a and I guess I never will go there. I have boycotted these restaurants for years: Carl’s Junior, Domino’s Pizza, White Castle and Waffle House. (And for any of you middle aged ladies out there, Curves Fitness is owned by a real extremist who gives 10% of the profits to anti-choice wingnuts.)
Likewise, there are a bunch of businesses the anti-choice zealots say should be boycotted because of their support for Planned Parenthood. Get a load of this partial list:
New boycott targets include AOL, Darden Restaurants (Bahama Breeze, The Capital Grille, LongHorn Steakhouse, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Season 52), Franchise Services (PIP, Signal Graphics, Sir Speedy), Hilton Worldwide (Conrad Hotels,Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inns/Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Hotels, Homewood Suites), Ignite Restaurants (Brickhouse Tavern+Tap, Joe’s Crab Shack), ING (financial services), Kohl’s (department stores), Mrs. Fields (cookies),Staples (office/school supplies), Toys “R” Us, and Trader Joe’s(markets/supermarkets).
Returning to The Boycott List are The Gap (apparel/accessories) and Freddie Mac (U.S. Government-sponsored secondary mortgages).
Corporations continuing as boycott targets from the previously released Boycott List include AlphaGraphics, Wells Fargo (including Wachovia), Nike, Time Warner, Bank of America, Walt Disney, Johnson & Johnson, Lost Arrow (Patagonia, etc.),Chevron, and Nationwide Insurance, among others.
Garvey was critical of pro-life organizations that continue to use PayPal even though it has been a boycott target for several years now. “PayPal is owned by boycott target eBay,” Garvey said. “Most pro-life groups are aware that it is a boycott target because it has funded Planned Parenthood, but they have consciously chosen to continue doing business with the company. Doing so is indefensible.”
The new Boycott List includes a “Dishonorable Mention” section, which identifies charitable groups that are associated with Planned Parenthood and/or its agenda. Groups named in this section include Lions Clubs, the American Cancer Society, Easter Seals, Boys & Girls Clubs, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Camp Fire, Girls Inc., Girl Scouts, Kiwanis Clubs, March of Dimes, Muscular Dystrophy Association,Rotary Clubs, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Salvation Army, YWCA,America Gives Back (formerly [American] Idol Gives Back), and YMCA, among others.
“This has not been some sort of ‘Jesse Jackson boycott’ where we make news for a few days and then go away,” said LDI Chairman Thomas C. Strobhar. “Corporate officials are learning that those who value life are among the most dedicated people on earth. We will not go away until corporate involvement with Planned Parenthood comes to an end.”
I can easily live without Chik-fil-a, Carl’s Jr, Dominos, White Castle and Waffle House. I wonder how many cultural conservatives are actually living without all those organizations above? And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, apparently. (You can’t find out all the names on the list without buying it from this group, naturally.) And lest you think this rightwing boycott list is an obscure list that nobody’s heard of, check out the endorsers.
Some of the corporations listed above are not automatically worth supporting simply because rightwingers don’t like their charitable giving. Obviously, there are other criteria that we all must use when evaluating a company. But let’s just say that when it comes to women’s rights and gay rights, it appears that the business community is far more attuned to the beliefs of the liberal side of the dial.
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