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Run-of-the-mill pizza chain Papa John’s wants the world to know that it’s actually pretty woke.
The chain got dragged through the media ringer two weeks ago when word broke that on an earnings call, CEO John Schnatter blamed declining sales on National Anthem protests by NFL players. A few days later, toxic white supremacist site the Daily Stormer posted an endorsement for the chain, and Papa John’s mortal enemy, DiGiorno, also launched a hilarious flame-war. A rep quickly shot down the suggestion that Papa John’s served the “official pizza of the alt-right,” while also noting that the company did not want white supremacists buying its pizza, anyway.
And now, Papa John’s has issued a carefully-worded statement via a Twitter thread that supports the players’ rights to protest while also expressing respect for the anthem. Oh, and also, Papa John’s also flips the bird to those neo-Nazis:
The statements made on our earnings call were describing the factors that impact our business and we sincerely apologize to anyone that thought they were divisive. That definitely was not our intention. (1/3)
— Papa John's Pizza (@PapaJohns) November 15, 2017
We believe in the right to protest inequality and support the players’ movement to create a new platform for change. We also believe together, as Americans, we should honor our anthem. There is a way to do both. (2/3)
— Papa John's Pizza (@PapaJohns) November 15, 2017
We will work with the players and league to find a positive way forward. Open to ideas from all. Except neo-nazis — those guys. (3/3)
— Papa John's Pizza (@PapaJohns) November 15, 2017
While it’s nice that Papa John’s is offering its support to the players and explicitly calling out the reasons why they are protesting, it’s unfortunate that it took the company a whole two weeks to issue this statement. The middle finger is nice bit of punctuation at the end, though.
Now maybe Papa John’s can work on turning around its reputation as the pizza that you only eat when it’s free or literally the only option available for delivery.
• Papa John’s Tells Neo-Nazis Not to Buy Its Garbage Pizza [E]
• DiGiorno Is Dragging Papa John’s on Twitter Over the Delivery Chain’s Sales Slump [E]
• Papa John’s Blames NFL Protests for Falling Sales [E]
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