Chick-Fil-A removed from plans for an upcoming Kansas City airport wing after opposition from LGBTQ commission

• Chick-Fil-A was cut from a list of restaurants proposed for Kansas City's planned airport terminal.
• The news comes after the city's LGBTQ commission urged the city council to act.
• Chick-Fil-A has previously donated to charities known for opposing LGBTQ rights.

Plans to open a Chick-Fil-A store at an upcoming wing of Kansas City International Airport have been canned, following opposition from the city's official LGBTQ commission, local news sites KSHB and KCUR first reported.

The city's LGBTQ commission sent a letter to Kansas City Council on on Monday, urging officials not to open a Chick-Fil-A restaurant in the new airport wing. It cited the company's links to groups known for opposing LGBTQ rights.

Vantage Airport Group, the company recommended by the city's aviation authority to run services at the upcoming terminal, scrubbed Chick-Fil-A from its list of proposed restaurants "to promote an inclusive environment," a spokesperson for Vantage told Fox News.

"We heard and respect the strong community reaction to the proposed Chick-Fil-A participation in the program. We have collectively made the decision to remove this brand from our concessions plan for the new terminal at KCI. Vantage strives to promote an inclusive environment at all our airports," the group told Fox News.

Insider contacted both Vantage and Chick-Fil-A for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Chick-Fil-A has come under attack over its donations in the past. As Insider's Kate Taylor previously reported, prior to 2012 Chick-fil-A made significant donations to socially conservative and Christian organizations known for opposing LGBTQ rights through its WinShape Foundation.

In 2012, facing backlash after now-CEO Dan Cathy said that he was against same-sex marriage, the company said it would stop most of these donations.

But in the years that followed, it continued to face pressure from activists over other donations, including to the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Both organizations have been criticized for their historical opposition to same-sex marriage.

In November 2019, Chick-Fil-A said it would cut donations to these charities too.

In July, its CEO, Cathy, came under fresh scrutiny over personal donations to the National Christian Charitable Foundation (NCF). The Daily Beast reported that the NCF was bankrolling organizations fighting against the Equality Act - legislation that would make it illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ people.

At the time, Insider's Kate Taylor reported that the company itself had not donated to the NCF in more than a decade. Chick-Fil-A declined to comment on the report around Cathy, however.