Promoting the idea that you can bring your guns to Starbucks seemed like a good idea, at least until another mass shooting occurred.
via ThinkProgress
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has written an open letter asking customers to stop bringing guns into his 7,000 coffee shops — just two days after a man who had been enlisted in the Naval Reserves allegedly shot and killed 12 people at Washington DC, Navy Yard. [...]
“For these reasons, today we are respectfully requesting that customers no longer bring firearms into our stores or outdoor seating areas—even in states where ‘open carry’ is permitted—unless they are authorized law enforcement personnel,” Schultz wrote in the public letter. He stressed that the new policy is “not an outright ban,” which would “potentially require our partners to confront armed customers, and that is not a role I am comfortable asking Starbucks partners to take on.”
Schultz was reportedly uncomfortable after open-carry gun fetishists decided to celebrate Starbucks Appreciation Day by descending on the popular coffee shop with guns slung over their shoulders and strapped to their belts.
And to that I say — what were you expecting?
This is America. If you announce that it’s okay to bring your guns to Starbucks, people are not only going to bring their guns, they’re going to lionize you.
When the head of Chick-Fil-A announced that they oppose gay marriage, thousands of bigoted homophobes descended on their nearest Chick-Fil-A restaurant and celebrated their bigotry by consuming fried chicken and french fries.
It’s possible the prospect of running into a horde of men with guns turned a number of people away from Starbucks, while Chick-Fil-A was already known for being a religious franchise that isn’t even open on Sundays.
Did Schultz really have a sudden change of heart, or was business negatively impacted in key locations?
According to a story from Politico, the latter seems to be the case.
Last month, for example, the company closed down a store in Newtown, Conn., for the day after learning that gun rights advocates planned to hold a “Starbucks Appreciation Day” at the location. The store was near the school where a gunman killed 20 children and six women. [...]
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, which was formed the day after the Newtown, Conn., school shooting, has been organizing “Skip Starbucks Saturdays” to urge the coffee company to ban guns at its stores. Participants take photos of themselves at competitors such as Peet’s that do not allow guns and post them online.
It’s possible the belligerent cat is already out of the bag, and since this is “not an outright ban,” this letter could spark a wave of pro-gun rallies at Starbucks.
You can read Schultz’s open letter here.