Starbucks Closing Some Stores, Citing Safety Concerns in Certain Cafes
Wall Street Journal
The Facts
Starbucks is permanently closing 16 stores in Portland, Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC by the end of July due to incidents causing unsafe conditions for customers and employees.
The move comes amid store manager complaints over a surge in assaults, thefts, and drug use in and around the store locations, which first prompted executives to re-think the company's "open bathroom" policy.
The Spin
Right narrative
In an attempt to "go woke" and appease the left's anti-policing agenda, Starbucks made its customers and employees vulnerable to dangerous criminals and drug users. The irony is that most of these complaints came from the liberal customers and employees of these Democrat-run cities.
Left narrative
This is another example of large corporate chains closing in poor or minority neighborhoods. They say it's because of an increase in thefts or other crimes, but the real reason is the profits from these locations aren't lucrative enough so have left local customers and employees in the dust. The timing amidst the unionization push is suspicious as well to say the least.