As protests began following George Floyd’s murder several weeks ago, it took a week or longer for businesses and corporations to respond. For the most part, those businesses responded by making public statements about how they stand for racial equality and they will try to do more (vaguely) going forward. Starbucks was one of those corporations:
Black lives matter. We are committed to being a part of change.
You can find educational resources at https://t.co/xSXwaw2vQA. pic.twitter.com/ZxifsW7oeO
— Starbucks Coffee (@Starbucks) June 4, 2020
They also posted about coming together for “open and honest conversations about racial injustices” and hosting an “open forum” with their partners about race. Then, just days later, they banned their employees from wearing Black Lives Matters t-shirts, pins, scarves, hats or anything that could be seen as “political.”
As protesters took to the streets in hundreds of cities across the United States and the globe to support Black Lives Matter and decry police brutality, Starbucks, like many major American companies, rushed to publicly proclaim its support for the movement and pledged to do more to combat racial injustice. On June 1, the coffee retailer vowed on Twitter to “stand in solidarity with our Black partners, customers and communities.” A few days later, it tweeted, and then pinned, a more in-depth commitment to supporting Black Lives Matter and confronting bias and racism and to “being a part of change.”
Being part of that change does not extend, however, to allowing the company’s baristas and other employees to wear T-shirts, pins, or any other accessory that mentions Black Lives Matter. In fact, the company explicitly stated that Black Lives Matter attire was prohibited from the lists of things employees can wear due to its dress code policy, which also includes any type of political, religious, or personal accessories or clothing. However, as many employees noted to BuzzFeed News, Starbucks not only exempts buttons and attire celebrating LGBTQ rights and marriage equality, but hands them out.
According to an internal bulletin obtained by BuzzFeed News, store managers had been contacting senior leadership on behalf of employees who wanted to wear BLM-related attire as protests continued to sweep major cities and small towns across the country. In response, management, according to the memo from last week, argued that wearing clothing and accessories highlighting Black Lives Matter could be misunderstood and potentially incite violence. The bulletin pointed employees to a video, which has now been removed, in which its VP of inclusion and diversity explained that “agitators who misconstrue the fundamental principles” of the movement and could use them to “amplify divisiveness.”
I get that most places – especially in the service industry – will have dress codes. I get that. But don’t pretend that this isn’t a strategic business decision to leave their black employees and white-ally employees feeling unsafe and unsupported for a reason. Starbucks is all for LGBTQ rights and wearing pins and t-shirts to promote LGBTQ rights because they want LGBTQ dollars. Starbucks doesn’t care about any income they might be able to generate from allowing their employees to support BLM at work. Besides, if LGBTQ rights are apolitical human rights, then why aren’t black rights seen that way too? Is it because the cops drink Starbucks too?
Photos courtesy of Getty.
Goodbye Frappuccino, I am going to miss you..
Same here. Goodbye. You cannot use #blm for social media “advertising” and then not follow through. Fork them.
It’s been suggested that if you do go to Starbucks when they ask your name for your order you tell them it’s Black Lives Matter.
I suppose you could get more creative with No Justice No Peace or others. I’m thinking it might be a fun way to protest.
Haha, that’s what I said to my son last night. He got a $50 Starbucks card from my dad for his bday. He was on the fence about using it. I told him he could donate it or when they ask for his name say its Black Lives Matter.
Or a better way to protest could just be to not give them your money SCollins?
The difference between BLM and LGBTQI+ is, I think, in Starbucks’ case, that the first is seen as very divisive ATM and might cost them customers, while people boycotting Starbucks for it’s LGBTQI+ policy are too few and far between for them to care.
It’s all about money.
As usual.
And they’re doing piss poor job at hiding it.
There is also the white supremacy white washing of Pride, as if it wasn’t started by a black trans woman and other queer/LGBTQ people of color.
PRIDE was not started by a black transwoman.
The Stonewall riots were started by a Black lesbian.
PRIDE was started by 5 white gay men, lesbians, and a bisexual woman.
STAR started by Black and Brown transwomen.
Yeah no more espressos for me. Bye bitch.
Well, I’m surprised, and sad, ok…adios venti Americano with light cream…we have several great local coffee shops here in town that support BLM. And my own coffee is good too, convenience is not > people.
of course they allow pride stuff but not black lives matter stuff. they know who their base is. there’s a reason that Starbucks is considered the go-to place for the basic blonde bitch.
I’m a Duncan Donuts girl myself. Hope they don’t have any shit.
I never set a foot in a Starbucks, and I will never do.
nor do I because their coffee is burnt and their coffee beans are roasted until they’re practically charcoal. short answer: their coffee sucks so I don’t drink it. plus they’re SO OVERPRICED.
WaWa or Dunkin for me. both sell bags of beans and coffee so I brew theirs at home.
Is it an urban myth or a truism that Starbucks charged workers/escapees from the Twin Towers for water and hot drinks on 9/11?
…no religious clothing – does that include hijab?
What corporation *doesn’t* suck right now?
Hi Andrew’s N, yes, there was a specific Starbucks that was located a few blocks away from the WTC that did not give water or any provisions to people who’d come running from the Twin Towers (and that vicinity) when the planes hit or to first responders. This was reported in the newspapers and on TV, so they had to do damage control and what they claimed was that they didn’t realize what was going on or what had happened at the WTC.
The fraps I make at home are better anyway. I haven’t spent hard-earned money at Starbucks in a very long time. Definitely not ever again.
I’d been moving away fro Starbucks for a while before quarantine, but now that I’ve been left to my own devices, I really do think the matcha and chai lattes I make are much better than the overpriced, high-calorie ones I bought there! And I’m certainly not supporting them now if they refuse to recognize BLM as a human rights issue.
They want the pink pound ,like i read on twitter they want the Karens and not the Keeshas.
People of color In our community have been posting about their racist encounters at local businesses. It is really disturbing. At this point I can’t buy anything from anywhere ever again. I already patronize minority owned restaurants but it seems like all my favorite coffee places have had issues. I’ll gotten used to being my own barista since covid and I’ll likely continue. We’ve also found a local roaster who buys fair trade beans. We are talking about putting in a coffee bar and investing in a good espresso machine. I’ll save a ton in the long run.
They’re wrong for this. I have a $15 Starbucks card that I received for my birthday last month sitting in my purse. IF I use it, my name will be BLM for my orders. Big IF.
I’ll use my prepaid starbucks (will no longer capitalize their name as a sign of my disrespect) card till it’s empty because they will not get my money for nothing. After that…so long to my once weekly “Tall, 1/2 sweet (for which you’ve always charged me full price), non-fat vanilla latte”…..till my card is empty. When they ask my name, it will be: Black Lives Matter, because I’m a Karen-look-alike, but not a Karen-think-alike…though, now that I’m thinking about it, maybe I will ask to speak to the manager so I can complain that not allowing any BLM but supporting LBGLQT is bigoted, racist and ugly…..
They already have your $15…if you don’t use the card, you are just letting them keep your money for free.
My very first thought is why they would treat LGBTQIA rights as apolitical and BLM as divisive. But it’s simple. They’re an expensive brand for privileged people and can often be found areas with a large LGBTQIA community. They want those dollars. They don’t care if they alienate Black people as much, because that’s simply not their target audience.
But in doing so they’re also going to lose a lot of people who support Black Lives Matter and believe it is a human rights issue, not a political issue. Like me! Bye, Starbucks!
Lol, they have already changed their minds.
https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2020/standing-together-against-racial-injustice/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=blacklivesmatter&utm_term=post&utm_content=marketing-social
They don’t want to offend their supremacist/racist clients, that is all.
as a business person, i get bitter when i see all these corporations doing #black out tuesday. this is where it really is. if it disturbs the bottom line then it isn’t happening. change NEEDS to cost something in order to be authentic. corporations have the most to offer in terms of money and resources so they need to take the biggest chunk out of their pockets and to offer a real incentive to supporting them. if a small business like mine can pay the cost of offering a living wage and attempts to address power dynamics, then a company like Starbux can make an effort. oh! that would mean actual action…not word salads.
Now is a good time to support local coffee places more than ever, especially BIPOC owned businesses, they need help more than Starbucks.
Well, goodbye Sbux…
Support you local cafes, coffee & tea shops y’all!
They reversed this decision.
Support your local coffee shop yes!!! My local shop stayed open for takeout. The Starbucks was closed for months. Now I’ll never go back.
Aw man. Starbucks sucks. They have a 7 billion merger with Nestle: a notorious holder company that has many subsidiaries that use glyphosates, MSGs (monosodium glutamates) labelled as natural or artificial flavors; autolyzed yeast extract and spices; trans fats disguised as emulsifiers;
dangerous hydrogenated fats kept in the dark by healthy-sounding names like corn, soybean, palm, and vegetable oil.
https://thetruthaboutcancer.com/nestle-foods-cancer/
Nestle also outsources water to the point of depleting aquifers almost completely and damaging ecosystems completely. Check this out for more information on water injustices: https://www.lakotalaw.org/our-campaigns/boycott-divest
Oh.. there’s so much more. Think about it. Does starbucks truly need this money ? They’re closing stores now because of the economy but this merger happened years ago. I realize I’m not addressing the blm topic. I think it’s more than vital to discuss. I just wish it didn’t take rioting to be honored, and to be discussed more critically in every facet. Many of you have highlighted what hot ticket sociopolitical items are favored, and what aren’t because of bottom lines. But can we just use these series of events surrounding covid, and the rioting to also stop supporting corporations benefiting from touting fake causes and issues important to us ? I feel if we support local businesses more than we are also uplifting all individuals.