Racial Profiling, Racial tension, racial unrest

Protests and Outrage after two black men arrested at Philly Starbucks

The ReadyWriter

Protesters gathered outside a Philadelphia Starbucks on Sunday and planned to regroup again on today after two black men were arrested there last week when they allegedly refused to leave.

The original incident occurred last Thursday, when a Starbucks employee called 911 because two black men were sitting inside the café. Soon after they arrived, police handcuffed the men and escorted them out of the shop. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross, who is black, said the men hadn’t purchased anything and refused to leave, which led to the arrest. Yet a protesting white women said, she’s walks in all the time to use the restroom without purchasing anything and was never arrested.

A video of the arrest and ensuing confusion went viral on Twitter.

Michelle Saahene witnessed the entire event, as she’d been at the Starbucks for nearly an hour. She told NBC News on Sunday that, as a black woman, she was slightly nervous when the police officers entered the coffee shop, but she was then shocked as the two men when they were approached by police officers.

After the two men were refused the bathroom, they just sat at a table silently and played with their phones as they waited for a friend, Saahene told NBC News.

“The cops were asking them to leave because they weren’t purchasing anything,” Saahene said. “[The two men] said they were confused. This is a Starbucks. Since when are people asked to leave a Starbucks who are just sitting there?”

Saahene said that a white man sitting next to her had been at the Starbucks for 30 minutes without making a purchase and a jogger came in and used the bathroom without making a purchase.

That’s one of the reasons she felt compelled to approach the employee who called 911.

“’Did you feel threatened’?” she said she asked the Starbucks barista. “She didn’t look at me. ‘Did you feel like your life was threatened?’ She still didn’t look at me.”

Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson swiftly apologized that the 911 call was made and that the two men were arrested. He said that the company planned to investigate the matter and retrain its staff, but said the store manager “never intended for these men to be arrested and this should never have escalated as it did.”

Unfortunately it’s too late! We’re sounding the call to boycott “StarBucks” everywhere.!!

Published by The ReadyWriter

Writer, Published Author, CEO of ReadyWriter Production Company and Blog Talk Radio Host.

77 thoughts on “Protests and Outrage after two black men arrested at Philly Starbucks”

  2. I’m sure that CEO is going to fire the person who called 911 dumb ass. That 1 racist employee has now ruined his chain and his brand. Fuck them I don’t frequent them any damn way😐😏✌

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  3. This story pissed me off😡Starbucks is the one place you can go and do anything without buying shit. I hated them anyways and really hate them now.

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  4. Yea this was way unnecessary. And the CEO’s apology is unfortunately too late because these gentlemen have now retained attorneys. So yea um, it’s a wrap. I hope they sue the police dept. too. Their excuse for the overkill is BS!!! And the chief is black. 😦 Sad how some of us hate us.

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  5. This is sad 😡 and unbelievable. But racial profiling at its best. They were minding their own business when this happened.

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    22. Hey Fam at this point…. we MUST DIVEST!!! Now that BLACK supervisor learned the hardway… when you do the MOST you’ll be the sacrificial lamb. She should be ashamed of herself for calling the police on those men. They did NOTHING wrong and now you’re a collaborator and Starbucks has shifted the blame from their POLICIES to YOU. Oh well, she’s out of work and Starbucks is CANCELLED!

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    24. Black people why don’t you use coffeeshops as a last resort? like if you’re on the road otherwise, brew your own. I buy a big azz can of coffee for about 10 bucks at Costco, lasts for months vs. Starbucks making bank $5 for 25 cents worth of product/labor costs. I buy coffee maybe 3-6 times a YEAR. Emergancy only and now, F Starbucks.

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  8. We always boycotting. Just shut them down. People need to see our power in our black dollars. They didn’t even know these 2 black men but profiled them as thugs. Their friend was devastated watching the bullshit unfold. Smdh unreal but not surprised.

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  9. ?tfw_creator=AlexHortonTX&tfw_site=WashingtonPost&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fnews%2Fbusiness%2Fwp%2F2018%2F04%2F15%2Ftwo-black-men-were-arrested-waiting-at-a-starbucks-now-the-company-police-are-on-the-defensive%2F

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    1. Did you just get off the slow bus Angelhair?
      They were waiting on a friend. Had they been white men 4 hours could have passed and it wouldn’t have been a problem. Wake your sleeping self up.

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    2. Read the post.
      The witness said there were other whites in the establishment who hadn’t purchased a damn thing and they weren’t singled out. Don’t be an idiot.

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    3. This incident didn’t occur because they didn’t make a purchase, 15 min and this bish calls 911… we all know why, so it’s pointless for you to say is this race hustling? 911 is for emergencies. She should have gotten a misdemeanor for even calling for some bs like that. Save it Becky.

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    4. Is this a story of race hustling again?
      Sheesh
      ******
      Are you retarded? Or really not understanding? Please re read the post for understanding.
      Thank u✌

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  14. These black men were businessmen wait until it all unfolds. Starbucks will pay a shot load of money the police dept will too.

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  15. White people sit in Starbucks all day long plugged into Starbucks electric and signed onto Starbucks WiFi and order nothing! That’s trespassing and borderline squatting but they don’t get arrested.

    Then on top of that white people bring their own bottled water and their own food and sit at Starbucks tables use Starbucks as an office. I’ve seen this. And never once has a white Starbucks “trespasser” “squatter” ever been arrested.

    Black folks love Starbucks and Whole Foods, two of the most racist companies in existence. Be disrespected and still go. I call a boycott on the BS. Shut them down!!

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    2. I agree with you 100%. The narrative always seems to change in a negative way when it’s something involving Black person.

      A Black person sitting in Starbucks waiting on a friend and using WiFi, it’s considered illegally using the establishment’s services, theft and trespassing. A Whyt person sitting in Starbucks waiting on a friend, it’s considered enjoying their leisure while enjoying the free Internet services offered by Starbucks.

      I don’t go to Starbucks, and I have no idea why so many Black people go there. I understand why Whyt people go, it makes them feel as if their in the upper class of people and on a different level. Whole Foods is expensive, been there before, however I cannot remember the last time.

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  16. Watch.
    All they gone do is fire the person who started this shit storm. That person is a liability because they will now cost them millions and possibly a loss of black presence everywhere. I know my black ass ain’t neva going there.

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  19. 215-732-0125 is the phone number for this store to reach Holly Hylton the birch who phoned 911. I called but the number is off because it’s been blown up

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      1. They didn’t order anything so the person who called police wanted them to leave. You are supposed to order something if you’re going to just sit there.

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      2. Seriously?
        Did you even read the post uptop?
        Saahene said that a white man sitting next to her had been at the Starbucks for 30 minutes without making a purchase and a jogger came in and used the bathroom without making a purchase.

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  25. This country’s race relations and issues are on a climax right now. People are taught and testie and incidents like this only fuel more 🔥

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  27. This country is a nightmare this is a clear cut and dry case of fear of the black man. Kind of seems like the spending power of African Americans has to be used to fight back in a capitalistic system.

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  28. This is crazy though. I know the rule of ‘must buy something,’ but most business aren’t sticklers about it. I can’t imagine enforcing this when all the two people are doing is sitting and conversing. IDK, I wouldn’t have asked them to leave.

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    1. Starbucks definitely isnt a “you must purchase something” location. Folks post up there ALL DAY EVERYDAY. Thats why even the white folks were like wtf… Cause Starbucks is the hipster chill spot.

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  29. I’m mad at the police (as usual) for taking the men into custody, holding them for 9 hours and not even charging them with anything.

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