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After Backlash and Calls to Boycott, Starbucks Will Now Allow Employees to Wear “Black Lives Matter” Apparel

After Backlash and Calls to Boycott, Starbucks Will Now Allow Employees to Wear “Black Lives Matter” Apparel

By goodblacknews on June 12, 2020

According to the Washington Post, global coffee corporation Starbucks, after telling its employees not to wear anything that said “Black Lives Matter,” has reversed course after news reports on their policy sparked a social media backlash.

To quote from washingtonpost.com:

“We see you. We hear you. Black Lives Matter. That is a fact and will never change,” the company said in a letter posted Friday. “This movement is a catalyst for change, and right now, it’s telling us a lot of things need to be addressed so we can make space to heal.”

Earlier this week, and first reported by BuzzFeed, the company turned down a request from baristas and other employees who wanted to show their support for the BLM movement.

In a memo to its 250,000-member workforce, Diversity Officer Zing Shaw said “there are agitators who misconstrue the fundamental principles of the Black Lives Matter movement — and in certain circumstances, intentionally repurpose them to amplifying divisiveness.”

The news sparked backlash on social media, including calls to boycott the company, just days after Starbucks had issued a “Black Lives Matter” statement of solidarity and committed $1 million to social justice groups as protests broke out across the country following the death of George Floyd, a black man, in police custody.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/12/starbucks-black-lives-matter/