An army of supporters stood in long lines Wednesday at the Covington Chick-fil-A using their orders of chicken and fries to defend the restaurant chain.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister, declared Wednesday "Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day."

The designated day came two weeks after Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy's comments supporting biblical marriage set off a debate on same-sex unions.

However, many said the real issue that drew them Wednesday was freedom of speech.

CovNews Facebook commenter James Knight said, "Marriage aside, perhaps a bigger issue is the right to say what is on your mind and in your heart without some group getting their dander up."

According to a statement release by Chick-fil-A, the special day was a customer sponsored event.

"We did not create Appreciation Day, but we appreciate all of our customers and are glad to serve them at any time," stated in a press release.

Doug, an employee at the Covington Chick-fil-A, said the local restaurant was packed for the majority of the day.

"We had a lot of support... We feel very fortunate," he said.

Cathy told the Baptist Press last month that the Atlanta-based company was "guilty as charged" for backing "the biblical definition of a family." Gay rights groups and others answered with calls for boycotts.

Opponents of Cathy's stance have planned "Kiss Mor Chiks" for today, asking people of the same sex to show up at Chick-fil-A locations and kiss each other.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.