Right now, tens of thousands of MAGA loyalists have descended on Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention, where disgraced former President Donald Trump will officially be nominated. While many corporations and businesses have withheld sponsorship for the RNC this year, Starbucks is listed as a partner.¹Unacceptable!

Some corporations have a practice of sponsoring both the Republican and Democratic national conventions, in order to appear nonpartisan. But this is not a typical year and Trump is not a typical candidate. As far-right extremism infiltrates the Republican Party and Trump expresses support for literal authoritarianism, it is as important as ever for corporations and businesses like Starbucks to take a hard stance against Trump and the MAGA Republicans.²

The decision to associate itself with the RNC and a political party that is notorious for spreading hate and misinformation—whose nominee has been convicted on 34 felony counts for lying and deceiving the American people in a desperate and unethical grab for power—is reckless and irresponsible. It is joined by groups like the Heritage Foundation, the architect of Project 2025, a blueprint for dismantling democracy as we know it. And known hate groups like Moms for Liberty, who have spearheaded book bans across the country and are working to strip away rights for LGBTQ+ youth, while not event sponsors, are also a part of the convention programming.^3,4

Based on Trump's track record and the reputation of groups like the Heritage Foundation and Moms for Liberty, we can predict the hateful rhetoric and lies that are going to come out of the RNC. By sponsoring the event, Starbucks is associating its brand with the GOP's most fringe, extreme, and out-of-touch base.

Starbucks is one of the largest coffee chains globally, with more than 17,000 stores worldwide, more than 300,000 employees, and more than 300 MILLION consumers each week.^5,6 They have a tremendous reach and impact. The choice to sponsor the RNC is not only disappointing to employees and customers, it's giving credibility to Trump's dangerous rhetoric and propaganda, and helping to advance the GOP's far-right platform. Not to mention, leading economists warn that Trump's proposals could make inflation worse, which is bad for everyone—including Starbucks.⁷

Trump has said that he plans to be a dictator on his first day in office.⁸

He poses a threat to the very foundation of our democracy. It is unacceptable for Starbucks to associate its brand with authoritarianism and hate. We need to make sure they feel the public pressure to withdraw their sponsorship NOW!

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