Starbucks' Petition to End the Government Shutdown

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If you've been to Starbucks lately, you may have seen a petition to end the government shutdown. The company is promoting the petition through several channels.

In a brief video on Instagram, CEO Howard Schultz asks customers to "Join us in our stores to sign a petition to ask our government to come together, solve our problems, and open up our government."

Starbucks petition

With the hashtag #ComeTogether, Starbucks is inspiring its 4.7 million followers to sign, and full-page print ads in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and The Washington Post are promoting the campaign. 

If that's not enough, Starbucks is asking people to text a code to encourage the government to get back to work.

Discussion Starters:

  • This is not the first political issue that Starbucks has gotten behind. What other recent examples can you find?
  • What are the risks and rewards for Starbucks' involvement in this campaign? Why would the company-and Schultz particularly-want to deal with this controversy?
  • Overall, do you think it's a good idea? Why or why not?