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Kellogg's Tony the Tiger Becomes Target of Antigay Group

Kellogg's Tony the Tiger Becomes Target of Antigay Group

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The American Family Association is directing online hate to Kellogg for its support of LGBT people.

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An antigay organization has taken issue with Tony the Tiger.

The American Family Association, which is categorized by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a hate group, lambasted a Kellogg ad on its Facebook page for being supportive of LGBT people. The ad featured the mascot of its cereal Frosted Flakes alongside the tagline, "Wear your stripes with pride."

An accompanying text blurb, alongside a Human Rights Campaign logo indicating the company had made the LGBT organization's list of Best Places to Work, read:

"At Kellogg, we're an evolving culture that respects and accepts employees' sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression so that all employees can be authentic and fully engaged."

"Guess who was a huge sponsor of the Atlanta Gay Pride march and festival last month? They even put an ad in the 'Pride Guide,'" mocked AFA, sparking a string of vitriol from its followers, many of whom advocated for a boycott.

"Good Bye Kellogg's, you're not so GREAAATTT!!! Anymore," posted Maria Trivisonno, who received over 300 likes for her comment.

"what they've done to tony is thoroughly disgusting. they won't stop until every comic character in the world is a homosexual. criminal is what it is. so sad," added Joe M. Wesson.

"Camel got heat for 'marketing cigarettes to children' because of their cartoon camel. Is it just me, or is Tony now marketing a sexual lifestyle to children?" questioned Jessica Kelly in the thread.

Following news of the Facebook reaction, the company's head of global diversity, Mark King, released a statement to The Huffington Post reaffirming its commitment to the LGBT community as a brand and company.

"Kellogg is firmly committed to diversity and inclusion and puts a tremendous amount of effort toward ensuring equality through our policies, benefits and culture," he said. "We are honored to have been named a Top 50 company for Diversity by DiversityInc, and for achieving a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index."

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Daniel Reynolds

Daniel Reynolds is the editor of social media for The Advocate. A native of New Jersey, he writes about entertainment, health, and politics.
Daniel Reynolds is the editor of social media for The Advocate. A native of New Jersey, he writes about entertainment, health, and politics.