Starbucks is clarifying its support of Black Lives Matter with the release of a shirt designed by some of its staffers that includes the name of the movement.
“We see you. We hear you. Black Lives Matter. That is a fact and will never change,” the company said in a letter from three Starbucks executives released Friday.
The world’s largest coffee chain says its shirt, designed by Starbucks’ Black Partner Network and allies, will soon be sent to its shops for staffers. Employees can wear their own Black Lives Matter pins or t-shirts until the shirts arrive in stores, the company said.
That message comes after BuzzFeed reported on an internal memo which showed Starbucks had banned employees from wearing Black Lives Matter attire, claiming that “agitators” could “misconstrue the fundamental principles” of the movement and cause division.