The group was
responding to an alleged incident on July 26 in which two
men -- Ryan Marlatt and Teddy Eggers -- and three other
friends were waiting for their food at McDonald's when
they claim employees referred to them as
"faggots."
A McDonald's
restaurant in Louisville, Ky., at which gay customers were
harassed and insulted for their orientation was visited
by dozens of protesters on Friday.
Carrying signs
saying "Homophobia Served Here" and "NOT Lovin' It,"
the protesters called for McDonald's to treat all
customers fairly. The group was responding to an alleged
incident on July 26 in which two men -- Ryan Marlatt
and Teddy Eggers -- and three other friends were
waiting for their food at McDonald's when they claim
employees referred to them as "faggots." Marlatt and Eggers
asked for the cost of their meals to be refunded by a
manager, but the men say the manager refused.
Following the incident, Marlatt and Eggers said they
tried unsuccessfully to contact the restaurant's general
manager and the McDonald's corporate office in
Illinois.
"For any business
to treat its gay customers this way is beyond the
pale," said Becca O'Neill, one of the organizers of the
protest, in a release. "All we want is for all
customers, gay and straight, to be treated with
decency and respect. Nobody should fork over their
hard-earned money for a meal and be treated this way."
Marlatt and
Eggers traveled from their home from Indianapolis to join
the demonstration. "We are very moved by all of your
support today," Eggers told the crowd. "When my
friends and I were here at this McDonald's in July, we
experienced the worst sort of verbal abuse and
hostility. Today we're seeing a much better side of
Louisville -- a side that won't stand for hate and
discrimination."
This is the
second piece of gay-related bad PR for the fast-food chain
recently. According to the virulently antigay American
Family Association, McDonald's
caved into its demand that a
company executive resign from a gay and lesbian
business organization. (Neal Broverman, The
Advocate)
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