What the cluck?
KFC has apologized for sending an alert urging customers in Germany to commemorate the Kristallnacht – the 1938 pogrom that preceded the Holocaust — by eating its cheesy fried chicken.
“Go ahead and treat yourself to more soft cheese on your crispy chicken. Now available at KFCheese!” KFC Germany wrote Wednesday under the subject line “Memorial day for the Reich pogrom night,” the Times of London reported.
The day marked the 84th anniversary of Kristallnacht, or “The Night of Broken Glass,” when Nazi mobs destroyed synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses.
They slaughtered 92 Jews and sent another 30,000 to concentration camps in what was considered the starting point of the Third Reich’s drive to annihilate Jews.
An hour after the offensive message went out on the app, the fast-food chain issued an apology and blamed “an error in our system” for the “inappropriate message.”
“We are very sorry, we will check our internal processes immediately so that this does not happen again. Please excuse this error,” KFC’s message reportedly said.
“We understand and respect the gravity and history of this day, and remain committed to equity, inclusion and belonging for all,” the company said in a statement, according to CNBC.
KFC said it uses a bot linked to national observances to generate notifications for its app, adding that its internal review process wasn’t followed properly.
Daniel Sugarman of the Board of Deputies of British Jews described the offending KFC message as “absolutely hideous,” the BBC reported.
In a tweet, Dalia Grinfeld, the associate director of European affairs at the Jewish NGO Anti-Defamation League, said: “How wrong can you get on Kristallnacht KFC Germany. Shame on you!”
[Written in collaboration with other media outlets with information from the following sources]
