“They’re essentially disturbed about it,” she said of the family.

“McDonald’s should investigate this incident, identify and terminate the employees responsible, and take proactive steps to satisfy this American family’s concerns, starting with an apology.”

News of the incident provoked fierce debate on social media.

Some empathized with the family and believed the accusations.

“I’ve certainly seen ‘good Christians’ doing some nasty things to those who are different,” said one AL.com reader. “I don’t know what happened here, but I can believe that someone putting together the sandwiches in a way that they knew would be offensive … I tend to believe the Muslim family, and think that some nasty fool stuck bacon into their sandwiches as a way to humiliate and inflict suffering on someone who is ‘other,’ they added. “That’s UnAmerican, in my books.”

“Decatur is a hot bed of alt-right, religious fanatics who aren’t tolerant of anybody who doesn’t look like a Baptist,” chimed in a second.

Others, however, were less than sympathetic, and a few were even skeptical.

“It’s a scam,” wrote one, echoing the sentiments of a few who argued the family intentionally created the controversy for money or attention. “They probably picked an Alabama McDonald’s because they figured it would draw more attention than say a McDonald’s in NYC.”

“Yeah, I don’t believe this was done by any McDonald’s employee,” wrote another. “I’d say 99% of the time, the people working in the back aren’t looking to see who their customers are.”