Campaign to make the chicken the state bird of Georgia

26-02-2010 | |

An Augusta restaurateur has launched a grass roots effort to change Georgia’s official state bird from the brown thrasher to the chicken, reports state.

“The brown thrasher hasn’t done anything. It’s a pretty bird, nothing against the brown thrasher, but the chicken brings millions of dollars,” said Chris Cunningham, president of the company that operates eight Wife Saver restaurants in Georgia and South Carolina.

Cunningham points to the chicken processing industry in northeast Georgia, saying that “chicken that’s processed in the state of Georgia is shipped all over the world. If it wasn’t for the chicken, Georgia’s economy would be in the tank.”

Cunningham is so adamant about the need for a change that he is spearheading a new website about the idea, flipthebirds.com.

On the website, he asks visitors to sign an online petition and to write their state representatives. He also talks about his effort to further the cause of the chicken.

“People need to get online, call us, get a yard sign, ask for a t-shirt, do something,” Cunningham said. “I just want to see how people think about it, and maybe the legislators might listen to us. At last the chicken will get a little respect out of the deal.”

Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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Kinsley
Natalie Kinsley Freelance journalist
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