Starbucks Succombs

Here’s what I’d say if two men were not ordering anything and had been reminded that that Starbucks wasn’t a bus station in which to just sit and talk, it’s a business:

“Starbucks is sorry that two men were asked to leave and then arrested when they would not.  It’s the policy of all of our stores to encourage sales and we asked them to leave three times, but they would not.  It doesn’t matter if those men are Black or White, this is not about racism, it’s about good business.”

I would not shut 8000 stores to teach sensitivity training in race relations.  Trust me.

“In Washington, D.C., Gregory Wilkins usually visits one of three neighborhood Starbucks for about 45 minutes before work to read the paper with his coffee or smoke a cigarette at the outside tables. Wilkins, who is black, said he’d consider going elsewhere if something like the incident in Philadelphia occurred again.”  Nobody cares, Mr. Wilkins, your trade isn’t going to make or break Starbucks.  Grow UP.

Clearly if the two men had just asked for coffees while they waited for their friend, all of this wouldn’t have happened.  But, hey….look what good this did to screw up race relations even more.   Would we have heard about this had they been White?  (I finally, after reading about six articles, saw that the LAWYER for the two men who were arrested says they were only there 15 minutes when they were arrested.  If that’s the case, I’d be surprised and I think arrests were extreme.    But, they were told the policy is that people can’t just sit there or use the restrooms without ordering something…….seems clear to me.  I wonder how many cups of coffee these guys will be able to buy once Starbucks settles a suit out of court.  And they will $$$$)

It’s time we start pushing back, folks, in a statement like I made above…and I suspect many Black Americans would feel the same way.

Z