"Conservatives are threatening boycotts of Cracker Barrel after the company swapped its rustic logo for a cleaner design, accusing the chain of betraying its "middle-American values." But LGBTQ+ historians say the uproar ignores a deeper irony: Just three decades ago, the Tennessee-founded restaurant was notorious for firing queer employees and became the target of one of the country's longest-running equality battles."
"The chain, famous for its biscuits, rocking chairs, and Southern nostalgia, introduced a new logo last week, retiring the mustached man leaning against a barrel in favor of a simplified yellow-outlined wordmark. The update was part of a $700 million rebrand meant to freshen stores and attract younger diners. Instead, it triggered a stock dip and a wave of backlash from conservatives who claim the company has abandoned its roots."
"Over the weekend, Starbuck said on his web series that Cracker Barrel had shifted from "old American nostalgia to cold, dead, lifeless, and modern." He mocked the change, adding that a friend asked what remained after removing "the cracker and the barrel," and he answered, "nothingness, the same nothingness that the left wants you to stomach in every other facet of your life.""
Cracker Barrel retired its mustached-man logo for a simplified yellow-outlined wordmark as part of a $700 million rebrand aimed at freshening stores and attracting younger diners. The redesign prompted a stock dip and sparked conservative backlash, with activists framing the update as a betrayal of middle-American values and calling for boycotts. Critics pointed to rainbow rocking chairs, Pride sponsorships, and partnerships with the Human Rights Campaign and Out & Equal as signs of a cultural shift. LGBTQ+ historians note the irony given the chain's history of firing queer employees and its role in a decades-long equality struggle.
Read at Advocate.com
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