Starbucks' Company-Wide Anti-Bias Training Aims To Prevent Discrimination
Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook | Twitter
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The Starbucks where the controversial arrest of two black men took place in Philadelphia last month will certainly be one of the 8,000 Starbucks locations closing early Tuesday morning as employees undergo anti-bias training.
Starbucks says the training addresses implicit bias and hopes it helps prevent discrimination, like the one that sparked protests after video showed two black men getting arrested inside a Rittenhouse Square Starbucks.
Starbucks Offers Preview Of Racial Bias Training After Arrest Of 2 Black Men In Philadelphia
The men had been at coffee house for less than two minutes, without purchasing anything when police were called.
"What happened in the way that incident escalated and the outcome was nothing but reprehensible," Starbucks' CEO Kevin Johnson said, apologizing for what many called a clear case of racial profiling.
And now, in less than 24 hours, Johnson will make good on a promise for all Starbucks employees to undergo anti-bias training.
Starbucks released a few seconds of an eight-minute video that all its employees will watch on Tuesday, when all stores around the country will close for the anti-bias training.
"The training is a first start, to something that can be beautiful in America," said James Abram from Yeadon.
Abram was with a group outside the Rittenhouse Square Starbucks on Monday, calling for Starbucks to do mare than internal employee training.
"Starbucks is an international conglomerate. They have the money, and the wherewithal that they can make a difference in African American life," Abram added.
