Starbucks issues response to Charlie Kirk's drink order controversy after trend went viral

Starbucks has issued a lengthy response to the Charlie Kirk drink order controversy after the trend went viral on social media.

For those not in the know, the ordeal kicked off last week (16 September) when one TikToker shared a video trying to order the right-wing activist's favourite beverage, which was a Mint Majesty tea with two honeys, and asking for his name to be written on the cup.

In the now-viral clip, the barista could be seen explaining that they 'can’t do political names', and instead offered to write just 'Charlie' on the cup instead.

However, the customer pressed some more asking: "Why can't you write the whole name?" To which the service worker replied 'because it's political'.

The TikTok, which has now amassed over 1.2 million views, quickly prompted many supporters of Kirk - who was fatally shot in the neck by suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, on 10 September in Utah - to order the same drink with the same name request as some sort of tribute to him.

Right-wing activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in the neck while speaking at a Utah university earlier this month (10 September) (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images)

The whole fiasco has since forced Starbucks to issue a series of statements on the matter, with the company's latest response (released on 17 September), reading: "In response to online discussion about our policy for customer names on orders, we wanted to provide the facts and share some background.

"Starbucks is a company built on human connection. Having a name, rather than a number, attached to a customer order has been a core part of the Starbucks coffeehouse experience for decades. Most customers use their own name. And when a customer wants to use a different name - including the name Charlie Kirk - when ordering their drink in our café, we aim to respect their preference."

Starbucks has been forced to address the viral social media trend which sees customers demand 'Charlie Kirk' is written on their cups (Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The statement went on to explain that over the years, Starbucks has had instances where 'some people have tried to abuse the system'.

"For example, they’ve provided something that isn’t a name at all, but rather a political slogan with the aim of having our barista shout it out as they hand off the finished drink. And in some cases, as their 'name,' they have provided words that are sexually explicit or otherwise offensive," the company added.

Starbucks carried on: "We aim to be a community coffeehouse where everyone feels welcome, so we have previously provided guidance to our partners to respectfully ask the customer to use a different name when attempting to use political slogans or phrases in place of their name. We are clarifying with our team now that names, on their own, can be used by customers on their café order, as they wish.

"We believe handwritten notes on our cups are a meaningful way for our baristas to connect with customers. We have clear policies that prohibit political slogans or negative messages to help preserve a welcoming environment. In the event we receive a report that a message doesn’t comply with our policy, we carefully review each case. We know that neither we, nor our customers, get it right every time.

"We also know the markers we use to write on cups are accessible to anyone. And therefore, notes can be easily added to a cup by others after the drink has been handed off by our baristas."

Starbucks said it aims to 'respect' their customers' 'preference' when it comes to which name they opt for on their order (The Salt Lake Tribune / Contributor / Getty Images)

The company went on to assure that it has reviewed recent social media posts alleging that critical comments were written on Starbucks cups.

"Our investigation, which included a review of timestamped in-store video footage, confirms that in the cases shared so far, the comments were not written by a Starbucks partner. They appear to have been added after the beverage was handed off, likely by someone else," the statement noted.

"Hundreds of thousands of Starbucks partners in tens of thousands of coffeehouses work hard every day to take care of millions of customers who come through our doors. And in millions of interactions every day, our dedicated baristas get it right. But in any instance where there may be a misunderstanding or where we don’t meet the mark, we’ll work to learn what happened and address any issues quickly."

Starbucks concluded: "We are committed to creating a welcoming space where every customer can enjoy a great cup of coffee served by a friendly barista. And we hope our customers visit us with the same positive intent. Thank you for being a part of the Starbucks community."

Tyla has reached out to Starbucks for further comment.

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