Following starbucks' vow to hire 10,000 refugees after President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration, the hashtag BoycottStarbucks is now trending on Twitter. As the hashtag suggests explicitly, many citizens have decided to boycott the American coffeehouse chain to protest against their decision, while others have decided to side with the coffee company and support their vow.
Starbucks vows to hire refugees after the President signed the executive order
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on January 27, 2017 that imposed a 120-day ban on all refugee admission from seven Muslim-majority countries, which led to heated protests and criticism worldwide.
Following the enactment of the executive order, Howard Schultz, CEO of the well-known coffeehouse chain Starbucks, chose to show his opposition to the president's decision by vowing to hire no less than 10,000 refugees worldwide over the next five years in countries where the company is implemented.
However, although Mr. Schultz made this surprising declaration, it is still unclear as to when the 5-year plan will be enacted. But it did not prevent debates from arising on social media -- especially Twitter.
Internet users choose their side on Twitter
Between the trending hashtags #QuebecCityMosqueShooting and #StandUpToTrump on Twitter, you will find the hashtag #BoycottStarbucks -- a hashtag used by the population in order to react to Howard Schultz's decision.
While many supported Starbucks' actions, others were outraged by the CEO's letter -- in which he supports immigrants -- and did not miss the opportunity to express their discontentment on social media by threatening to boycott Starbucks.
As a result of this, two main groups of Twitter users were formed -- with those siding with Starbucks, and those siding against the company.
Among the noteworthy reasons opposing Starbucks' decision are the indignation to see the coffee company hiring refugees over veterans and a discrimination towards Americans who would have a harder time finding a job with the increase of hired refugees.
Starbucks may have to expect a decrease in sales in the days to come.
