Burger chain Whataburger has entered the ongoing battle over gun carry in the state of Texas.
Whataburger President and CEO Preston Atkinson announced in a press release that the chain bans the open carry of firearms in their stores.
"Whataburger supports customers’ Second Amendment rights and we respect your group’s position, but we haven’t allowed the open carry of firearms in our restaurants for a long time (although we have not prohibited licensed concealed carry)," he said in the release. "It’s a business decision we made a long time ago and have stood by, and I think it’s important you know why."
"We’ve had many customers and employees tell us they’re uncomfortable being around someone with a visible firearm who is not a member of law enforcement, and as a business, we have to listen and value that feedback in the same way we value yours. We have a responsibility to make sure everyone who walks into our restaurants feels comfortable. For that reason, we don’t restrict licensed concealed carry but do ask customers not to open carry in our restaurants."
Gun control activists applauded the company's decision.
"They do not feel that part of their job description should involve assessing the intention of armed folks," Moms Demand Action spokesperson Stephanie Lundy told the Associated Press.
"Texans are bold and brave," Lundy said. "And that is what you are seeing from this CEO who is a gun owner."
However, gun rights activists were unhappy with the ban. Open Carry Texas founder C.J. Grisham called the ban "premature and irresponsible."
"I think most gun owners that know this policy are simply not going to go to Whataburger, like me," he told the AP.