This month, Cracker Barrel launched a new menu item: plant-based sausage from Impossible. The vegan breakfast patty is an addition to the current menu, not a replacement for all sausage patties at the restaurant. And it is just food, may I remind you—not a political policy, not a bill from a lawmaker. It’s a vegan sausage patty. But what happened next was an all-out culture war.
When Cracker Barrel posted the menu update on Facebook, the company might have expected a few grumpy followers to complain. Some people don’t like change, and, if we’re being honest, some people just don’t like vegans.
Instead, the Facebook comments were a stream of accusations that the new Cracker Barrel sausage was an indictment of American values. How dare an option exist for people who don’t eat meat? Or for those who are watching their cholesterol? Or those who avoid pork for religious reasons? The commenters were incensed and threatened to boycott the restaurant.
It seemed almost as if folks were being forced to eat something they didn’t want.
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“I just lost respect for a once great Tennessee company.”
“Are you kidding me? Who do you think your customer base is? I still order the double meat breakfast and it’s not even on the menu anymore. “
“YOU CAN TAKE MY PORK SAUSAGE WHEN YOU PRY IT FROM MY COLD, DEAD HANDS!!1 DON'T TREAD ON MY PORK!!1
“There’s no such thing as sausage made from plants! Call it what you want but it still isn’t sausage. Just like ‘transgender,’ call it what you want but..…..….well you know.”
As we say about accepting everything that you may not agree with—abortions to same-sex marriage—what business is it of yours? No one asked for your opinion. If you don’t like it, then don’t marry someone of the same sex, have an abortion, or eat the damn veggie patty.
For me, Cracker Barrel was simply one of those places you see off the highway when you’re driving from one state to another. But, boy, was I wrong. It’s a beloved institution founded in 1969 in Lebanon, Tennessee. And in that 50-plus-year history is a deep streak of racism and discrimination far more relevant than a vegan sausage.
The Washington Post reports that in 1991 Cracker Barrel was called out for reportedly firing gay employees whose “sexual preferences fail to demonstrate normal heterosexual values which have been the foundation of families in our society.” The company eventually ended the policy after heavy pressure from gay rights activists, The Los Angeles Times reported.
But in 2004, the Justice Department settled a lawsuit against the chain after numerous claims of racial discrimination against Black customers.
The complaint lists against Cracker Barrel include:
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“seated white customers before African American customers who arrived earlier”
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“provided inferior service to African American customers after they were seated”
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“treated African Americans who complained about the quality of Cracker Barrel's food or service less favorably than white customers who lodged similar complaints”
The reality is that restaurants like Cracker Barrel, Burger King, Carl’s Jr., and others aren’t trying to be political. They’re trying to make money. And since heart disease is the leading cause of death for all people of most racial and ethnic groups in the U.S., maybe Impossible sausage will help a few folks live a little better. It won’t change everything, but at least it’s a start.
And that’s in addition to the impact of our meat consumption on the planet. According to the folks at UCLA Sustainability, “From a greenhouse gas emissions perspective, it is without doubt; significantly better for the environment to eat plant-based foods.”
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