Tony Perkins, president of the
Christian conservative Family Research Council (FRC), wants to know
whether it's “Burger King or Burger Queen?”
Perkins has joined other conservatives
in condemning the fast-food chain's Proud Whooper – a
limited time burger wrapped in a rainbow-colored paper which states
“We are all the same inside.”
“When Burger King says 'have it your
way,' they aren't just talking about food,” Perkins told his radio
listeners. “Is it Burger King or Burger Queen? Customers in San
Francisco aren't so sure after the chain's new Proud Whopper. Local
stores unveiled the rainbow menu to coincide with LGBT week.
Although nothing's different about the burger, executives hope the
wrapper will make a statement. But even in liberal San Francisco,
Time reports, some customers have a beef with the burgers.
'If that's what they're gonna do,' said one person, 'they won't
[have] my business anymore.'”
“That's the beauty of the free
market. If Burger King wants to cater to a fringe group at the
expense of other customers, that's their choice. Just like it's
Cracker Barrel's decision to support natural marriage and the
celebrities who advocate it. The problem is those companies who say
they believe in debate and then try to silence it. That's the
biggest whopper of them all,” he added.
Right Wing Watch noted that the “Burger
Queen” reference was only used in the text version of Perkin's
remarks posted on FRC's website.