Starbucks CEO Asks Baristas to Talk About Race Relations with Customers

Would you like some tolerance with that cappuccino?

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced a new PR campaign for the world’s largest coffee shop chain, in which employees are encouraged to serve up chats about race relations to customers.

“We at Starbucks should be willing to talk about these issues in America,” Schultz said in a corporate release on Monday announcing the “Race Together” campaign.

Starting on Monday, Starbucks baristas are being asked to write “Race Together” on coffee cups they hand to customers, as an invitation to talk to them about race.

The company also ran full-page ads in USA Today, which it is partnering on this plan, and the New York Times over the past few days, with the slogans “Race Together” and “Shall We Overcome?” over a black background.

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Schultz has a history of activism with the ubiquitous multibillion dollar corporation, openly insisting that Starbucks supports gay marriage and gun control, even if that brews discontent with some investors.

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