Activists Urge Berenstain Bears to Dump Chick-fil-A

Taren Stinebrickner-Kauffman of SumOfUs.org (left), Zack Malitz of CREDO Action (center) and Claiborne Deming of SumOfUs.org (right) before delivering a petition to HarperCollins.

HarperCollins, publisher of the popular Berenstain Bears children’s books, is being pressured to sever ties with Chick-fil-A due to its president’s controversial comments against same-sex marriage. The publisher is set to partner with the chicken-oriented fast food chain on its kids’ meals later this month.

On Wednesday morning, members of SumOfUs.org and CREDO Action delivered a petition with 80,000 signatures to the HarperCollins office in New York City. They included a copy of The Berenstain Bears and the New Neighbors, along with the message that Chick-fil-A's actions runs contrary to the Bears’ teachings and values.

"HarperCollins needs to learn a lesson from its own Berenstain Bears, which teach children about the values of acceptance, and the dangers of bigotry," said Taren Stinebrickner-Kauffman, founder of SumOfUs.org, to the New York Daily News. "By partnering with Chick-fil-A, a company that actively bankrolls hatred and discrimination against the LGBT community, HarperCollins is undermining the lessons of the beloved Bear family.”

She urged the publisher to follow the lead of the Jim Henson Company, which pulled its Muppets toys from the restaurant chain late last month.