McDonald's Celebrates Pride Month

One Million Moms Vs Free WiFi

Just in via email:

Public Wi-Fi hotspots are attracting pedophiles and sex offenders to McDonald's - where we bring our children to eat and play - and where illegal p-rn can be accessed easily with anonymity. Because there are no filters to block online p-rnography and child p-rnography in these restaurants that so many families like yours and mine frequent, this toxic illegal content is readily available in every Starbucks and McDonald's in America. The best way to combat this growing trend - and to protect our children - is for you and me to pressure companies like McDonald's and Starbucks to implement filtering to block p-rnography on their public Wi-Fi networks. TAKE ACTION: Sign our letter of petition to McDonald's and Starbucks to be delivered to the CEO's of both companies and their Board of Directors. We will include only your name and state on the petition. Your support will help us get protective WiFi in McDonald’s and Starbucks 25,000 combined locations to protect children and families.

The email goes on to vow that One Million Moms will stop unfiltered free WiFi in all public places.

McDonald's Reveals French Fries Recipe

Mmm, delicious anti-foaming agents.

The Cure For Religious Attrition Is Putting McDonald's Outlets In Churches

A project of the Christian branding agency Lux Dei.

Coalition Of Human Rights Groups: Sochi's Top Corporate Sponsors Must Speak Out

A coalition of 40 human rights groups have issued a joint letter to the top ten corporate sponsors of the Sochi Olympics which demands that they denounce Russia's abuses against LGBT people. Via press release:

Corporate sponsors of the Sochi Winter Olympics should act now to urge Russia to halt the rising tide of discrimination, harassment and threats against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, 40 of the world’s leading human rights and LGBT groups said today, in an unusual joint open letter. The letter to all of the leading sponsors of the Sochi Olympics asks them to use their leverage as underwriters of the 2014 Winter Games in a variety of concrete ways.

The groups urged sponsors to speak out against Russia’s anti-gay “propaganda” law, which violates the Olympic Charter’s principle of non-discrimination, and to ask the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to undertake systemic reforms to monitor and prevent human rights abuses in future host countries. “Time is running out for the sponsors to take a clear stand in defense of Olympic values,” said Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch. “These companies are sponsoring an Oympics marred by ugly discrimination and serious rights abuses. They should speak out forcefully for equality and human rights.”

The joint letter is addressed to the 10 TOP Sponsors of the Sochi Games (members of “The Olympic Partner” (TOP) Program)--Atos, Coca Cola, Dow Chemical, General Electric, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Procter & Gamble, Samsung, and Visa. The Human Rights Campaign, Human Rights Watch and several other groups have engaged with the sponsors for nearly a year to urge them to act on abuses.

Among the groups in the coalition: Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Human Rights Campaign, Athlete Ally, GLAAD, Family Equality Council, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Including in the requests for action, the letter asks that Sochi's top corporate sponsors address LGBT rights in their Olympic advertising.

Share A Coke With...

In the growing campaign to shame Olympic advertisers, activists are using the website of Coca-Cola South Africa, where you can personalize a Coke can and click to share it on social media. I used the above message and added the McDonald's hashtag #CheersToSochi.  (Tipped by JMG reader Mark)

NOTE: If you try to type the word "gay" you get this message: "Oops, let's pretend you didn't just type that." But the word "straight"? That works just fine.

Nancy Goldstein Vs McDonald's

Activists are now in their fourth day of hijacking the #CheersToSochi hashtag on Twitter. (Tipped by JMG reader Str8 Grandmother)

Sochi Hashtag Hijack

For the last two days LGBT activists have been hijacking the McDonald's Twitter hashtag for the Sochi Olympics.

Seniors Make Deal With Queens McD's

Last week a McDonald's in Queens made headlines after calling the police to evict senior citizens that were spending their days taking up all the restaurant's tables. The New York Daily News now reports that McDonald's management and the seniors have come to an agreement.

It's a McDeal. A group of Korean senior citizens and the manager of a McDonald’s in Flushing have reached a detente over use of the scarce seating area in the fast food restaurant. Management has agreed to ease the 20-minute seating limit during off-peak hours and post signs stating the policy in Korean and Mandarin. In turn, the seniors will give up their seats during the busy hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. if other diners are looking for a spot to sit. “We had to dig deeper to comprehend the pride of a small business owner as well as the pride of our seniors to seek a place to socialize,” said Assemblyman Ron Kim, who helped broker the deal during meetings on Sunday. In addition, the restaurant will look into hiring workers who speak Mandarin and Korean, and a local senior center will provide transportation at the location to give patrons another place to hang out.

NEW YORK CITY: Men Sue Uptown McDonald's Over Homophobic Staffer

Two men have sued an uptown Manhattan franchise of McDonald's, claiming that a staffer joined customers in a homophobic attack on them.

Willis Washington Jr. and Horace Stevenson III were in the Hamilton Heights Mickey D’s at 2:30 a.m. last December when a fellow customer assumed the two men were gay, they claim. The customer “started to say he had a problem with gay people and that the gay lifestyle was not what God wants,” according to their Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit. They ignored the loudmouth, but When they got to the counter, Washington and Stevenson say the cashier joined in the homophobia and refused to serve them, the lawsuit alleges filed last week. The customers began pushing the two men to the back of the store, prompting a panicked Stevenson to dial 911 before the cashier “actually handed one of the customers a metal pipe from behind the counter and motioned to him that he should hit plaintiffs with it,” according to the lawsuit.

According to the suit, the NYPD initially arrested the victims, but charges were later dropped.

Coca-Cola And McDonald's: The Olympic Games Should Remain In Russia

In statements obtained by Pink News and Buzzfeed, Coca-Cola and McDonald's expressed support for the LGBT community, but both corporations agree that the Olympic Games should remain in Russia.

From Coca-Cola:

We have long been a strong supporter of the LGBT community and have advocated for inclusion and diversity through both our policies and practices. We do not condone human rights abuses, intolerance, or discrimination of any kind anywhere in the world. As a sponsor since 1928, we believe the Olympic Games are a force for good that unite people through a common interest in sports, and we have seen firsthand the positive impact and long-lasting legacy they leave on every community that has been a host.

From McDonald's:

There’s no room for discrimination under the Golden Arches. McDonald’s welcomes 69 million customers around the world every day representing different races, nationalities, religions, genders, ages and sexual orientations. McDonald’s supports the spirit of the Olympic Games and its ability to unite the world in a positive and inspirational way. We’ve been a proud sponsor of the Games for 37 years. Regarding the recent Russian legislation, we support the International Olympic Committee’s belief that sport is a human right and the Olympic Games should be open to all, free of discrimination, and that applies to spectators, officials, media and athletes.

CHICAGO: Activists To Protest McDonald's Sponsorship Of Sochi Olympics

Next weekend a group of Chicago activists will rally outside the McDonald's corporate headquarters in protest of their sponsorship of the Sochi Olympics.

Members and supporters of StonewallAgain plan on marching at McDonald's headquarters, 2111 McDonald's Dr. in Oak Brook, on Aug. 17 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The group is calling on McDonald's to cease their support of the Games to take a stand against Russia's harsh new anti-LGBT laws. In a deal that lasts through 2020, McDonald's pays about $100 million to be sole retail food sponsor for each pair of Olympics in a four-year period. The protest will "tell McDonald's Corp. to stop sponsoring the homophobic Sochi Winter Olympics. Russia has implemented laws to arrest and deport anyone who is or they suspect is gay," according to StonewallAgain's Facebook page.

The group's Facebook event page is here.

McDonald's: Proud Winter Games Partner

(Tipped by JMG reader Robert)

Free Big Macs For Life?

Ramsey was eating McDonald's take-out at home when he heard the screaming from a nearby house.

Austrian McNoodles

Eater has the story:

McDonald's Austria is getting an Asian noodle dish called McNoodles on September 20. Apparently Austria is going through a major "Trend zu Nudelboxen" right now — literal translation: a "trend of noodle boxes" — and McDonald's is jumping on that train with these bowls topped with chicken, vegetables and choice of sweet-n-sour sauce or curry. The dishes will be available for the next two or three months at Austria's 179 McDonald's locations, and will go for 4.99 euros ($6.56).

Billboard Of The Day

McDonald's has launched a lamb burger in Australia. The Serious Lamb Burger "is centered on a lamb patty made of egg, breadcrumbs, onion, parsley, rosemary, oregano and garlic." Sounds baa-licious.

Tomorrow: Chick-Fil-A Depreciation Day

Tomorrow is the big day for all the hate groups' Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day. In response, some activists suggest ordering a chicken item from McDonald's and posting its photo on the Facebook page of your closest Chick-Fil-A franchise. If you're one of them there "Mickey D's is death food" folks, the above item is quite lo-cal.

Every McDonald's

Don't seem like enough. (Source)

It's Back

"The animal they made it from is now extinct."

The World's Largest Employers

(Source)