We Stand With Chick-fil-A': North Carolina Wendy's Signs Touch Off Controversy

The national burger chain Wendy's was hit with a bit of secondhand controversy from the Chick-fil-A appreciation day today after one miniature burger mogul franchising the company's restaurants went rogue.

The story began when North Carolina Wendy's franchisee Jim Furmen, who owns no less than 86 of the company's franchises in North Carolina, decided to have all 86 of his restaurants display a sign making the following unapologetic statement:

Needless to say, given the existence of pictures of this phenomenon, the internet took notice. The internet site Reddit began circulating photos of Furmen's handiwork, prompting controversy. So much controversy, in fact, that the official Wendy's Twitter account posted a reaction from the company saying that Furmen had taken the signs down (presumably under corporate edict) and that Wendy's was proud to "serve ALL customers."

Reaction to this Tweet was, needless to say, mixed. Some Twitter users breathed a sigh of relief, but as you'll see below, others took offense to the implication of the company's Tweet, which was clearly that Chick-fil-A might NOT "serve ALL customers." Wendy's clarified hastily:

So profusely did Wendy's spend all its time apologizing to every single user who Tweeted out this particular bit of news, in fact, that they hit their Twitter limit, prompting this awkward message:

National restaurant chains everywhere, be warned: Chick-fil-A's day in the limelight can be contagious.

H/T: Buzzfeed