All year long we witness those traditional green logos on white cardboard to-go cups bobbing up and down the streets. This famous logo and these ever present coffee cups belong to the American coffee company and coffeehouse chain Starbucks. Founded in 1971, Starbucks has become the third-largest fast food restaurant chain and its locations can be found all over the world.
However, in recent years, their holiday adaptation of the the traditional Starbucks cup has received some debate. In the past, this controversy was regarding the proper respect for Christianity. Some people were so passionate that the design undermines Christianity, a video titled “Starbucks’ War on Christmas” went viral on YouTube, gaining more than 14 million views. This video included Joshua Feuerstein’s argument that Starbucks has given into political correctness.
But when looking at Starbucks’ website, one might find many Christmas-y items such as Christmas ornaments, an advent calendar and a special Christmas blend coffee. Nonetheless, the idea that the Starbucks company is attempting to weaken the spirit of a religious holiday such as Christmas with their non-religious affiliation cups became unacceptable to people like Feuerstein.
The minimalistic red cup design in 2015 caused an uproar from, now President, Donald Trump as well. He said at a rally that November that Starbucks is an offender and is due for some backlash.
Starting with the first holiday design in 1997 with what was described as a “jazz-themed design in jewel tones of deeper reds, greens and blues,” as described by Starbucks, became a much larger dispute of Christianity and then the liberal agenda.
Now, the root of this controversy has taken a slight turn. The 2017 holiday cup features a diverse lineup of Starbucks customers including a pair of cartoon women holding hands. Their relationship is not specified but many see it as an inclusion of gay and transgender couples.
After the British LGBT Awards posted a video promoting the festive cup featuring a lesbian couple, BuzzFeed published an article and Fox News took up the story as well. BuzzFeed claimed that the cup is “totally gay” which Fox News then refuted saying that they “asserted the hypothesis is fact.”
An email from Starbucks to the New York Times stated that they would let customers decide for themselves what the cup means to them. They went on to say that the cup was designed to allow customers to add their own color and illustrations.
“But how can we make everyone happy?” One might ask. There should be room in society for tolerance of others’ world views and total acceptance of different sexualities and identities. So how can we compromise? In a statement, Starbucks explained that they are trying to “create a culture of belonging, inclusion and diversity.” A little holiday cheer, even if it is as simple as a red cup, should brighten our day rather than cause anger or complaints. At least for the sake of this year’s Starbucks coffee cups.
As for this year, the design of the Starbucks cup has received much less displeasure. Trump has not weighed in about the sexual orientation of the cartoons and Feuerstein has stayed quiet.
Photos from the Starbucks/Joshua Trujillo, Reuters/Carl Allegri, Starbucks.com