Chili's has cancelled a fundraiser for the National Autism Association following public outrage.
According to the Associated Press, in honor of National Autism Awareness Month Chili's scheduled a fundraiser that would have donated 10 percent of customers' checks from 1,200 restaurants to the National Autism Association (NAA).
The charity has been linked to its controversial views on the effects of vaccines on children. The NAA's website stated: "Vaccinations can trigger or exacerbate autism in some, if not many, children...While mainstream science discounts vaccinations as a cause, members of the National Autism Association feel vaccinations have triggered autism in a subset of children."
The Centers for Disease Control reported that one in 68 American children have the condition. Chili's views are reportedly against the Centers for Disease Control. There is "not a causal relationship between certain vaccine types and autism," stated The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The restaurant cancelled the event Monday following negative feedback from guests. Several Facebook users took to social media to denounce the restaurant chain's support of the NAA. A spokesperson for the restaurant released the following statement:
"Chili's Grill & Bar is committed to giving back to the communities in which our guests live and work through local and national Give Back Events. While we remain committed to supporting the children and families affected by autism, we are canceling Monday's Give Back Event based on the feedback we heard from our guests," the company said in a release to FoxNews.com. "We believe autism awareness continues to be an important cause to our guests and team members, and we will find another way to support this worthy effort in the future with again our sole intention being to help families affected by autism."
In the statement, Chili's thanked their loyal customers for their thoughtful questions and comment.
Still, other social media users praised Chili's for its stance on vaccines. Following thousands of posts, Chili's also a statement about its fundraising effort on its Facebook page:
"At Chili's Grill & Bar, we're about making every guest feel special and pride ourselves in giving back to our communities. When choosing a charitable partner for our Give Back Events, both locally and nationally, we are committed to supporting organizations dedicated to helping children and their families.
The intent of our 4/7 National Give Back Event is not to express a view on this matter, but rather to support the families affected by autism. Our choice to partner with the National Autism Association was based on the percentage of donations that would go directly to providing financial assistance to families and supporting programs that aid the development and safety of children with autism. We sincerely appreciate all of the feedback we've heard on this topic."
