Should pro-lifers buy Starbucks?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcXxTHMvgeM[/youtube]
I see so many churches serving Starbucks coffee, and then talk about how pro-life they are.
If you’re pro-life, you might want to reconsider giving patronage to Starbucks. Starbucks is a financial contributor to Planned Parenthood.
Why not go to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf instead? As far as I know, they don’t contribute to Planned to Parenthood, and they’re very open with troop support.
I figured we would see more Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf coffee being served in churches than Starbucks.
~ Alfonzo Rachel criticizing conservatives who complain about liberal entities but continue to support them with their wallets, PJTV, May 17
May.23, 2012 6:00 am |
Inconsistencies |
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
It’s very true. I had a Christian tell me they couldn’t give up Olive Garden even though they support PP. I said I was sure God would understand how much they needed that chicken parm. It’s only babies lives. No big deal in God’s eyes. Italian food is so much more important.
They said, okay, okay, you’re right!
We have got to get our priorities straight. God has not called His people to put their comfort first. He has called us to be salt and light.
In the Chicago area, buy I Have a Bean coffee. Pete roasts out of Wheaton. His goal is to have franchises all over the country doing what he does — and he’ll succeed.
So what does he do? Hires ex-offenders. Gives them that first, difficult-to-get job back in the real world. And then he does more.
https://www.ihaveabean.com/aboutus
They’re at the Wheaton Farmers Market in the summer as well.
I have heard conflicting information about Starbucks. Can someone please clarify for me?
I haven’t had a Starbucks coffee in 4 months. I was conflicted over their pro abortion stance and then when they added gay marriage promotion to the mix, I said, “No more.”
It is difficult to boycott every company that is off track since most have some issue but enough is enough.
macsmind.com/wordpress/2012/02/dont-support-those-who-support-planned-parenthood/
Guilty. I really should forego Starbucks and make the sacrifice. It would be easy for me to do, and probably better for me health-wise. The problem is I don’t know where to draw the line. I have a water cooler in my house, and the Hinckley and Schmidt jugs have those pink caps on them, in support of Komen. I could literally spend my life dodging PP.
Thanks for that information, rasqual! I have several friends who settled down in Wheaton after attending school there. I’m sure they must already know about this company but I’m going to give them a heads-up just in case.
Ok, there are so many businesses that are purported to be anti-life. I confess that I like Starbucks. I really don’t feel like boycotting everyone is helpful. My view is, that if I give my money to a company, that company has someone who is a Christian who gives them something of theirs and that act then gives them the onus to somehow find their way back to the right values. I think that there is a chance for everyone who appears to be on the wrong track to get on the right track, and if all the people who buy Starbucks were actually pro-choice (given that pro-lifers abandon Starbucks) wouldn’t that just make it less possible for Starbucks to get redeemed? Just sayin. And in my corner of the world, Starbucks baristas likely come from pro-life homes. Do we then color them with the same stripes are radical pro-choicers?
Mary, the point to boycotts is when enough people stop using a service the company changes their position to win back customers and therefore money. If 50% of the people who buy Starbucks are pro-life and 50% are pro-choice and all the pro-life people stopped buying Starbucks then Starbucks would be looking at a 50% reduction in their earnings. Even a few percentage points can make a huge difference to a profit driven business. So even a very large business can be persuaded to change their public stance if a relatively small amount of people boycott together.
I agree, in general, that there are just too many companies one would have to avoid to really boycott everything that engages in offensive politics. I participate in boycotts selectively, choosing both those companies who are particulalry outspoken and those boycotts which are organized enough for the company to relate a (possible) dip in sales to the boycott (or those stores who have several black marks against them I don’t buy Starbucks for any number of reasons for instance). That being said, why in the world would a church use Starbucks to begin with? It’s so horrendously overpriced and there are any number of smaller charity or Christian based coffee supplies/houses which are readily availible to churches. All the churches I’ve been in have always used small, local brands which supported church-based charities or missionaries.
Mary-
I understand what you are saying, but at the end of the day the question is what matters more to you? Do you want to give money to a company that supports abortion? We KNOW they give money to PP, but we don’t know what their workers support/what they’ll do with the money. On the other hand, if we frequent businesses that don’t support PP, we KNOW they don’t support PP but don’t know about their workers, etc. The fact of the matter is, by purchasing from their organization we, the consumers, place a big seal of approval on their company’s actions and beliefs.
A thought: what if every pro life person in America/Canada decided to boycott Starbucks? We would probably create a significant dent in their profits, and they MIGHT consider dumping PP and other controversial organizations.
I’m not trying to judge you. I still support some organizations/businesses/entertainers that support PP. BUT I’m also intentionally trying to wean myself off of those businesses and only purchase NEEDS from them. If I want to see a movie with Scarlett Johansson in it, I’ll rent it from the library. If I want coffee, I go to Caribou Coffee instead of Starbucks. I may not have taken everything out (That might be impossible) but I think as pro life people we need to at least make the effort to switch our consumer loyalties to match our moral loyalties. Just my two cents :)
It’s easy for me to boycott them since I am not a big coffee drinker anyway, but if I were, I wouldn’t go there since I don’t think it even tastes very good. I like other company’s coffee more. Mary hit a nerve with me. It is hard to avoid all the companies that support things we disagree with. Bottom line, pray about it and obey whatever God says for you to do. It’s too bad that companies in general can’t just be neutral.
I think the Starbucks giving is less…I am not as anti-Starbucks as I am anti-Olive Garden, shall I say (don’t freak out, stay with me).
IIRC, Starbucks lets its baristas name a non-profit to which it will give some sum commensurate with what they are making. Even on the list provided in the link above, these companies do not necessarily support Planned Parenthood outright, but will “match” gifts made by their employees to a non-profit the employee supports. So, while I don’t know that they are doing so, it’s entirely possible Starbucks also gives to pro-life causes. Therefore, in this case, the target for change is not Starbucks, but the baristas who support Planned Parenthood. And the most effective way to reach them is to continue working to change the culture.
To be clear, I hate coffee. I don’t even like the smell. Usually, when I want hot chocolate, I go to Joe Muggs. I’m not saying this because I crave Starbucks. I’m saying it because while I absolutely support boycotting (yay, capitalism!), I think that in this case, it would target the wrong group. Now, if it came to light that Starbucks refused to match employee donations to pro-life organizations, that would be something else.
Meh, Starbucks coffee isn’t even that good.
I wasn’t aware that they were ALSO pro-abortion, but it doesn’t surprise me: they actually staged a homo “kiss-in” a while back (way to defame the civil rights movement, sb!) The chain is owned by super-Moonbats.
I loved their bottled drinks, but I’ve had to give them up… It’s just not worth it.
At the 2011 SFLA Conference at the March for Life, one of the (obviously) Pro-Life speakers was drinking Starbucks. My (at the time) 14 year-old daughter spoke to him after his presentation about Starbucks and their involvement with the abortion agenda. He told her he would do as he pleased and was rude about it. And that is not just her impression, but mine as well as I heard his reply. I was very disappointed.
For me, the toughest boycott has been Home Depot for the homosexual equivalency support. I am in a home improvement store at least once a week every week. And changing from Home Depot was tough!
@Bryan – what about Loews?
I’ve hated the bitter, evil witches brew knowncoffee ever since I was forced to make it for the lawyers I worked for back in the day (and serve it, and wash out coffee cups) so I have no problem boycotting Starbucks. I used to like Whole Foods, but I stopped going since they are big PP supporters. They’re overpriced anyway, and they no longer carry my beloved Orangina because it has high fructose corn syrup. But I do miss their salad bar.
phillymiss – Lowes is where I go now – it took a long time to get used to where everything was and get to know which of their associates were knowledgeable – and there are things that HD has that Lowes does not, and Lowes is higher-priced – but they do not support the HRC agenda, so that is where I go
Just did some searching based on this post. Discovered Ben & Jerry’s is also a supporter…no! My long-time bank also is–switching is going to be such a pain.
Don’t forget ebay and PayPal (which are affiliated). Both support Planned Parenthood.
FYI – if we are going to discuss all the justifiable boycott targets due to PP support, let me respectfully suggest the LDI boycott list. Visit http://www.fightpp.org/ for more info. Their list is extremely thorough, and it is very well researched. I believe that if they are on the LDI list, they should be boycotted. I have personally inquired on more than one occasion where I doubted whether someone should be on the list. And LDI has been able to provide very thorough very compelling evidence every time. You have to pay for the list so that it does not end up turning into a “let’s support them” list for the pro-abort crowd. But I can not say enough about the work that LDI does in this area.
wanting everyone to take note that JC Penney is another candidate for this list? Recently featured a mother’s day spread which included a woman and her partner (hugging) and their two children. But it comes to a point where there are few places left to go. I have no doubt that many support this stuff in a quieter way.
the ebay and paypal thing upsets me….especially since ebay has some HARD TO FIND items that I couldn’t get otherrwise…like pen refills..though I did find an online store that I can get refills from..and paypal….sometimes I use that to pay for items online instead of using my Credit card.
I told my brother in law about starbucks…he actually has switched to drinking Panera Bread Cofrfee. Not sure about my sister….
As for Olive Garden, have not eaten there in several years….as long as the local Italian place doesn’t start giving to planned parenthood…I’ll go there if I want Tiramisu
Their support of PP was bad enough, but now add to that Starbuck’s support of boys marrying boys it looks as though Starbucks seems intent on eliminating future customers. Not a good business model.
“they actually staged a homo “kiss-in” a while back”
Not really sure why a prolifer would use the word, “homo.” We’re the good guys, remember? We respect every human person and don’t use disparaging terms for people. Or at least we shouldn’t.
re: coffee. ughhhh, I can’t stand that I can no longer go to Starbucks!! I have only been to SBs twice in the past several months due to their public support for same sex marriage in Washington State (not that their support of ssm surprised me). I didn’t know they also supported PP. That of course is another reason not to patronize their stores. My boycott of SBs I’m sure has saved me money. It’s always good to feel like you saved money, especially if you do so by not giving to causes you don’t believe in.
Has everyone who is avoiding Starbucks also written to Starbucks to tell them that you’re not buying their product any longer? I did. Their response was very polite, but not surprisingly they defended their support of same sex marriage. I would encourage everyone to let them know, nicely of course, that you’re no longer patronizing their stores.
Right now I buy the coffee at my workplace’s coffee shop, which isn’t bad, but I know in the summertime I will definitely be wanting a grande unsweetened iced coffee!! Most other brands of iced coffee taste like brown water to me after drinking SBs. Dunkin Donuts will have to suffice for iced coffee. At home I usually make half regular/half decaf, using whatever looks good in the food section at TJ Maxx. The coffees I have bought there have been outstanding, actually. I have also bought Mystic Monk coffee, which is really good, and roasted by monks at their monastery in Wyoming. So of course I’m supporting what I consider to be a good cause by buying Mystic Monk as well.
And Mary, the asst mgr of one of our local Starbucks is the daughter of a really devout Catholic prolife woman I’m friendly with. Trying to persuade Starbucks to rethink the causes they support by not giving them my money is still the right thing to do.
Does anyone know how this works in Canada? I know some companies licence the name but are wholly owned by Canadians. I was looking through the Canadian site to see who they sponsor. There are some really good causes, and no pro-choice ones.
Then I read this:
“2001 – Starbucks Coffee Canada incorporates as an independent, 100% wholly owned subsidiary of Starbucks Coffee Company.”
So I guess that means they’re indirectly supporting PP, doesn’t it? Sigh. I was one of the few people here happy to see that they support same-sex marriage, but being pro-choice trumps that for me, and I’ll be boycotting.
I can live without Starbuck’s, but now I’m afraid to research Tim Horton’s. :(
For what it’s worth, the coffee company I started several years ago not only doesn’t support Planned Parenthood, but we actually DO support local pro life ministries. And the coffee is pretty incredible too. http://www.gobeanheads.com if you wouldn’t mind trying it. :-)
You folks just keep fretting over all these silly details…I’ll have a grande soy latte and a large chicken parmesan please.
This is not a Starbucks. Please take your order elsewhere.