Chick-fil-A welcomes gun owners at its restaurants, but as a matter of policy was not the host of a "Guns and Coffee" meet-up sponsored by a state lawmaker, the company's spokesman said Tuesday (Sept. 24). "Chick-fil-A is not sponsoring an event associated with this cause," said Communications Vice President Carrie Kurlander, referring to the Tuesday morning event announced this...
Chick-fil-A welcomes gun owners at its restaurants, but as a matter of policy was not the host of a "Guns and Coffee" meet-up sponsored by a state lawmaker, the company's spokesman said Tuesday (Sept. 24).
"Chick-fil-A is not sponsoring an event associated with this cause," said Communications Vice President Carrie Kurlander, referring to the Tuesday morning event announced this week by state Rep. Jeff Thompson, R-Bossier City.
Thompson scheduled the gathering, the first in a series, in reaction to a recent announcement by Starbucks Coffee that firearms are no longer welcome in its cafes.
The Seattle-based company has stopped short of outright banning guns, the company's CEO Howard Schultz said in an open letter to customers that using the cafes as staging grounds for pro-gun political rallies "disingenuously portrays Starbucks as a champion of 'open carry.'"
Chick-fil-A took much the same stance Tuesday, noting "people gather in our restaurants every day for food and hospitality (but) it's our policy not to host political events."
The company has not gone so far as to ask gun-toting customers to leave their firearms at home. But Kurlander said the owner of the Bossier City location "was caught off guard" by Thompson's request to hold the event at his restaurant and specifically requested the event be moved.
Thompson went to the location to buy people coffee and allow them to sign up to join the group and win a commemorative shotgun, he confirmed Tuesday morning. After visiting the restaurant, Thompson said he would hold a press conference at his district office.
"We are buying coffee for anyone coming through Chick-fil-A in Bossier this morning but no 'rally' or event or anything," Thompson said via text message. "Nothing corporate about it. It is about choosing locally where you spend your money as a customer."
Thompson added the meet-up was never meant to be sponsored by the company. He called Chick-fil-A an "awesome corporate citizen."
John Roden, the operator of the Bossier City location, said Thompson and some supporters came in briefly and "bought coffee like any other customer" but that the only events to be held there Tuesday were senior bingo in the morning and a children's birthday part at night.
"We were getting kind of packed so they felt compelled to just pack up their stuff and leave," Roden said. He denied they were requested to leave but when asked to confirm if he had previously asked Thompson to move the event, the owner said the restaurant was busy and he had to hang up.
Kurlander did not know the company's policies on carrying guns into restaurants, but said she would provide that information Tuesday. The Atlanta-based company was thrown into controversy last year after COO Dan T. Cathy expressed his religious opposition to gay marriage.
Thompson said he would be holding more "Guns and Coffee" events around the state before the start of the 2014 legislative session in March.
Lauren McGaughy is a state politics reporter based in Baton Rouge. She can be reached at lmcgaughy@nola.com or on Twitter at @lmcgaughy.