KFC Germany sorry after customers invited to mark Kristallnacht with fried chicken

Kentucky Fried Chicken’s German branch has apologized after inviting people in the country to enjoy some tasty chicken to commemorate Kristallnacht.

Kristallnacht is the name for the Nazi-led anti-Jewish riots on November 9-10, 1938, that swept through town across Nazi Germany and served as a harbinger of the horrors to come. Over several days, rioters destroyed hundreds of synagogues, looted thousands of businesses and killed at least 91 Jews; 30,000 Jewish men were sent to concentration camps.

Understandably, many Germans were taken aback to receive a push message from the fast food chain declaring: “Memorial day of the Reich pogrom night: Treat yourself to more tender cheese with the crispy chicken.”

The message caused outrage on social media. A few minutes later, KFC sent a second push: “Sorry, an error occurred. Due to a bug in our system, we sent an incorrect and inappropriate message through our app.”

Frage an @KFCDeutschland: Heute wurde diese App-Benachrichtigung von KFC Germany verschickt: „Gedenktag an die Reichspogromnacht – Gönn dir ruhig mehr zarten Cheese zum knusprigen Chicken. Jetzt bei KFCheese!“ – Habt Ihr noch alle Hühner auf der Stange? pic.twitter.com/7636gLsc55

— Gerd Buurmann (@Buurmann) November 9, 2022

It said internal processes would be checked immediately “so that this does not happen again.”