Not cool. Actress Thandie Newton took to Twitter on Monday, January 4, to blast Starbucks for its offensive statue depicting a young black boy holding up a basket of coffee beans.
“Seriously @Starbucks? At the counter – Loin cloth and Safari hat on a black child. Happy New Year circa 19th century,” Newton, 43, captioned the photo of the piece, which was selling Colombia Narino espresso beans.
The incident was quickly identified by Starbucks online, and that same day the customer-service handle for the coffee company responded to Newton on Twitter.
Seriously @Starbucks? At the counter – Loin cloth and Safari hat on a black child. Happy New Year circa 19th century pic.twitter.com/kD3qgKmti1
— Thandie Newton (@thandienewton) January 4, 2016
“@thandienewton we are very concerned to learn of this incident & we can’t apologise enough. We have removed the figure & are investigating,” @starbuckshelp wrote.
It’s not the only time the international chain has been under fire recently. Back in November, Christian groups slammed Starbucks for debuting an ombre red holiday cup instead of a cup featuring its annual festive prints.