#DumpStarbucks: A Philly re-hashtag with an Arizona twist
Six police officers in Tempe, Ariz., were asked to leave a Starbucks because a customer “did not feel safe," according to a tweet from the Tempe Officers Association.
On the Fourth of July, six police officers in Tempe, Ariz., were asked to leave a Starbucks because a customer “did not feel safe,” according to a tweet the next day from the Tempe Officers Association.
“This treatment of public safety workers could not be more disheartening,” the tweet read. “Unfortunately, such treatment has become all too common in 2019.”
Now, the hashtag #DumpStarbucks has begun to proliferate.
Sound familiar?
Folks on Twitter have jumped in with a reminder that, yes, this treatment is all too common: Remember the two black men who were arrested in a Starbucks near Rittenhouse Square last year? The incident stirred a nationwide uproar and caused the company to shut down all its stores to train its workers about racial bias. (#BoycottStarbucks trended after the incident.)
The Tempe Police Department confirmed that police were asked to leave a Starbucks there July Fourth. Spokesperson Detective Natalie Barela said Saturday night that her department was “actively working” with Starbucks to address it.
“It is our hope that the incident which occurred at Starbucks was an isolated incident between one community member and a single employee rather than an entire organization,” the department said in a statement Saturday.
Meanwhile, Starbucks spokesperson Reggie Borges told the Arizona Republic that the company was reaching out to the Tempe Police Department and the Tempe Officers Association for more details and to apologize.
“We have a deep respect for the Tempe Police and their service to the community,” he said. “We want everyone in our stores to feel welcomed and the incident described is not indicative of what we want any of our customers to feel in our stores.”