Burger King misses the mark with tweet for International Women’s Day

In honor of International Women’s Day, @BurgerKingUK, tweeted a “joke” that “Women belong in the kitchen,” as a way to encourage female employees to pursue a culinary career.

Understandably so, this tweet went viral almost instantaneously, receiving backlash in regard to the brand’s insensitivity towards centuries of sexism and oppression. The fast-food giant followed up their original Tweet with two more Tweets in a thread, that many Twitter users assumed was damage control, saying, “If they want to, of course. Yet only 20% of chefs are women. We’re on a mission to change the gender ratio in the restaurant industry by empowering female employees with the opportunity to pursue a culinary career.”

Burger King continued: “We are proud to be launching a new scholarship programme which will help female Burger King employees pursue their culinary dreams!”