Howard Schultz, the CEO of the Seattle-based coffee giant, has already spoken in favor of gun control and same-sex marriage, speaking from the company's perspective - and now, he's also instructed baristas to freely discuss one of the most sensitive subjects of all in their United States stores, as the Starbucks race campaign shows a new side of the company.
As would be expected, the Starbucks race campaign has been received with mixed reactions, as it deals with the sensitive subject of race and the existence of racism in the U.S., an endlessly difficult topic to discuss.
According to website INC, the Starbucks race campaign comes straight from the mouth of its CEO, as Schultz released a company video addressed at the chain's baristas, in which he instructed them to "facilitate a conversation" with patrons about race, in an attempt to move forward on the topic in different communities.
News outlets like The Washington Post have panned the Starbucks race campaign for being unnecessary in that sort of environment, making fun of a possible situation in which a patron goes in to have a macchiato but is instead instigated to speak about current events involving racism, making people uncomfortable.
There was similar backlash last February, once McDonald's put their Super Bowl campaign of "Pay with Lovin'" into force, as it created a lot of awkward situations in which people were forced to hug others or call their mothers for a free meal at the restaurants' venues.
Time Magazine, however, has let in former NBA most valuable player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as a columnist to speak about the Starbucks race campaign, calling it flawed but wonderful, as he says it's bold of the company to attempt this move but equally shocking as they think it could work.
The new Starbucks race campaign will be set in motion this Friday, March 20, and it's unclear whether it'll actually get any results besides discomfort- but kudos at the company for even trying to put the topic on the table.
