No Coffee News Roundup This Week
A Black Lives Matter mural in Graffiti Alley in Ann Arbor.
Like the title says. There are more important things going on in the world.
The specialty coffee industry itself has a serious racism problem, something that is starting to be openly discussed by industry pros on Twitter and beyond. On a basic level there are too many white people in positions of power, too little diversity, and too little accountability—and that’s before even getting started on the active racism I’ve seen documented over the past week.
Writing about the latest coffee news, the goofy nonsense Starbucks and Nestlé have been up to, seems trite and pointless right now.
Therefore, the Roundup will be taking a break for a while. On Twitter and Instagram I will be doing my best to amplify and spotlight, to use the small platform I have.
In the meantime, I urge you to support the protests that are spreading across the country and the world. This website is a good place to start.
If you can protest, you should protest. If you can support financially, you should do that.
If you live in the US and want to contact your representatives, you can text RESIST to 50409 and ResistBot will help you craft your letter and send it—you can also use Twitter if that’s your thing. I’ve had (admittedly condescending and trite) responses from several of my representatives, so it works to at least get their attention.
You should also support Black-owned businesses, specifically coffee companies. Sprudge is, as ever, on top of things and has put together an evolving list of places to buy your next bag from. The more Black-owned coffee companies can open and thrive, the better our industry will be.
You should also check out Sprudge for ongoing coffee news.
Until next time, drink good coffee. Black Lives Matter.
