Chick-fil-A apologizes after viral tweet from company account sparks accusations of racism

Chick-fil-A restaurant in Houston, Texas. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

• Chick-fil-A has faced backlash after a tweet from its account sparked accusations of racism. 
• The fast food chain apologized for the post, calling it a "poor choice of words."
• Chick-fil-A has previously faced criticism for its stance on LGBTQ rights. 

Fast-food chain Chick-fil-A has faced heavy criticism after a tweet posted from a company account sparked accusations of racism.

On September 9, the restaurant chain responded to a tweet posted by a Black Twitter user, with the username Don, about the chain's Spicy Chicken Nuggets. 

Seemingly in response to Chick-fil-A announcing the return of its Grilled Spicy Deluxe Sandwich, the Twitter user posted: "grilled spicy deluxe but still noooo spicy nuggets…………@ChickfilA….."

A company account for Chick-fil-A responded to the tweet, saying: "Your community will be the first to know if spicy items are added to the permanent menu, Don!"

The response garnered almost 9,000 retweets, with users accusing the company of using racially insensitive language with the phrase "your community."

One commenter said: "Do you mean like the black community?"

The company apologized for the tweet on September 12.

A spokesperson for Chick-fil-A told Today: "The response was a poor choice of words but was not intended in any way to be insensitive or disrespectful.

"We often use the term 'community' in a broader sense to talk about places where we operate restaurants and serve the surrounding community."

Representatives for Chick-fil-A did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside normal working hours.

Chick-fil-A has faced backlash in the past for its stance on LGBTQ issues. 

In 2019, the company pulled its donations and support for three separate groups that opposed gay marriage. The move was an effort to stop protests against the restaurant and broaden its customer base.

In August this year, a transgender woman told Insider she was harassed, outed, and fired while training as a director of operations at a Chick-fil-A franchise in Georgia.