Hyatt Hotels responded to an onslaught of criticism on social media over the weekend as a major Republican political conference headlined by former President Donald Trump took place at the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, Fla.
In a pair of statements posted on its website yesterday, the Chicago-based hotel chain defended its decision to host the four-day 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference after users on Twitter called out the company for allowing organizers to build a stage at the event in the shape of what some deemed to look like a Nazi insignia:
Hyatt deemed all symbols of hate "abhorrent and unequivocally counter to our values as a company," in its first statement responding to the Twitter outrage and explained in a subsequent one that it was unaware of the stage's likeness before the event.
"When we learned that CPAC 2021 stage design had been compared to a symbol of hate, we promptly raised this concern with meeting organizers who strongly denied any connection to such symbols. Had we initially recognized the potential connections to hate symbolism, we would have proactively addressed it prior to commencement of the event," Hyatt said in the second statement, which came after thousands of social media users shared posts comparing the stage to a Nazi rune symbol. "Unfortunately, this became clear to us only after the event kicked off. With CPAC’s denial of any intentional connection to hate symbols and our concerns over the safety of guests and colleagues in what could have been a disruptive situation, we allowed the event to continue. We understand and respect the opinions of those who might disagree with that decision."
American Conservative Union Chairman Matt Schlapp, whose group staged the event, also responded on Twitter criticism by calling comparisons between the stage shape and the Nazi symbol "outrageous and slanderous":
Hyatt, which is controlled by Pritzker family interests, said in its second statement that its employees at the hotel "worked tirelessly to support this event" in keeping with the company's "deep culture of inclusivity" but were "extremely disappointed by the disrespect many individuals involved in the event showed to our colleagues," the statement said.
Hyatt added: "We do not always agree with or share the same values as groups hosting meetings and events at our hotels—and while we may not always get it right, we strive to strike the right balance among our customers’ rights to express themselves in their meetings and events, inclusivity and our role in providing meeting facilities."
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CPAC creates PR headache for Hyatt Hotels - Crain's Chicago Business
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