Starbucks is closing all stores nationwide for racial-bias training — yet baristas say the problem runs deeper than many customers realize (SBUX)
REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
- On April 12, a Starbucks manager called the police to arrest two black men at a Philadelphia location. In response to protests, the coffee chain will hold an "implicit racial bias training" on May 29.
- In more than a dozen interviews with Business Insider, former and current baristas are divided on the training. While some feel optimistic, others view it as a PR stunt — with one barista saying Starbucks was simply "trying to save their a--es."
- Most black and Latino baristas we interviewed said they have experienced explicit racism on the job, sharing experiences such as being called the N-word "with a hard r."
- In general, the baristas said that the Philadelphia incident was a result of institutional racism, a problem much larger than Starbucks.
On the afternoon of May 29, Starbucks will shutter every US store — more than 8,000 across the country — after police arrested two black men at a Philadelphia location on April 12.
Minutes after arriving for a business meeting, one of the men asked to use the restroom without ordering any food or drinks. A white store manager responded by calling 9-1-1 on the men, who witnesses say "didn't do anything." Footage of the arrest quickly went viral, sparking a national backlash against the coffee chain.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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