Before a weekly football game at West Linn High School, the administrators informed students that there would be food trucks available so that they would be able to get something to eat or drink before and during the game. The students were excited and didn’t think that there would be anything wrong with the idea. However, when some of the students found out who would be operating one of the food trucks and serving fried chicken, they changed their minds. A Chic-Fil-A truck arrived at the football game and was greeted by boos from the students. The reason for all of the booing was because students didn’t want to support a company known for being anti-LGBTQ.
Over 100 students walked out of the football game and took a stand against the company. They would not buy anything from the truck and urged others at the game not to make a purchase as well. The popular Christian company is known for its strong beliefs and values, one being that it’s closed on Sundays to allow employees to spend time with their families and attend church services. Owners have also made it clear that they don’t support same-sex relationships or marriages. At times, the company has tried to loosen its beliefs a bit as more people join the LGBTQ movement, but there are still people who have criticized the company’s viewpoints. This is why the students at the school made it known that they would not support this truck at their game.
The arrival of the food truck isn’t the only thing that has had students in an uproar on campus. A student known to be transgender saw a vulgar message on their vehicle along with the vehicle vandalized. Even though the 100 students who protested against the food truck even out to about 5% of the school’s population, they hope that they have sent a message to other students and staff. Other players and attendees decided to go ahead and get their beloved chicken from the truck and didn’t think twice about it aside from listening to the students protesting. One of the students, Susie Walters, was interviewed by a local media station and offered her input about why the group protested. The transgender student was proud of those who stood up for their beliefs and saw it as a step forward in accepting more people of all backgrounds instead of only accepting those who meet certain standards. The LGBTQ supporters in the school stood together and wanted to simply show that no one is alone and that there will always be someone who understands. After seeing the protest, the principal of the school stated that there was no word about the vandalized car and informed students that the protest shouldn’t have occurred.
