They say if your actions don’t support your words, then change cannot occur. This fall, due to consumer pressure, Chick-Fil-A, the third most popular fast food chain in the country, announced a plan to stop its donations to organizations with anti-LGBTQ policies. As of this year, the chain will now focus on giving to organizations that support youth education, youth homelessness and fighting hunger. 

I used to watch my peers eating Chick-Fil-A, and wonder how they could support the company. According to a ThinkProgress report, Chick-Fil-A donated over $1.65 million in 2017 to anti-LGBTQ organizations such as the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Paul Anderson Youth Home.

In an interview conducted by Vox in 2012, the founder of Chick-Fil-A, S. Truett Cathy, said that marriage should only be between a man and a woman, leading him to support organizations that supported his own personal belief.

However, after competitor Popeye’s chicken sandwich became a viral sensation, the public came to realize that Popeye’s just so happens to have a comparable menu and is also a more socially-conscious alternative. According to Vox, Chick-Fil-A CEO Tim Tassopoulos said that the chain had received enough backlash about its donations to change its strategy. 

I commend Chick-Fil-A for changing its plans for this coming year. However, the reasoning behind the change seems to be lacking in meaning, and the support from the public before the change is disappointing. As a society looking for change and equality, we should have limited our support of the organization in the first place. 

Finally, although Chick-Fil-A announced that it will not be donating to anti-LGBTQ organizations in 2020, the company never officially stated that it will permanently stop donating to such discriminatory organizations in the future. It’s up to us to keep tabs on Chick-Fil-A’s donations—and the donations and policies of other companies—even if it means giving up some tasty chicken.