The student news site of Westwood High School.

Westwood Horizon
  • Thanksgiving Break 11/25-11/29
  • Submit to the Dreamcatcher!
  • Buy your Yearbook!
  • Schedule your Senior Photos Today!
The student news site of Westwood High School.

Westwood Horizon
The student news site of Westwood High School.

Westwood Horizon

OPINION: Starbucks Holiday Cups Controversy Shows Society is Resistant to Change

Daniel Kang
November 16, 2015

gallery-1447171491-starbucks-red-cups-2015Starbuck’s annual release of its red festive cups signals the start of the Christmas season for many. This year, however, the release of the cups incited not an air of joy, but rather an outbreak of rage from some Christians.

This year, Starbucks chose a simplistic design for its holiday cups, with its logo encompassed within a sea of red. Starbucks intended to give the cup space for the customers to doodle and make their own holiday messages, so as to be inclusive, but some Christians took it as a step towards removing Christmas from the cup and claimed that Starbucks hated Jesus.

This absurd statement found support from thousands of people, as former pastor Josh Feuerstein made a statement regarding the issue saying, “Do you realize that Starbucks wanted to take Christ and Christmas off of their brand new holiday cups? That’s why they’re just plain red.”

To this, Starbucks responded adequately by claiming that the company’s core values were of inclusion and diversity, and that they would continue to embrace and welcome customers from all backgrounds and religions in their stores around the world, not cater to those of just the Christian religion. Without launching a counter attack, Starbucks effectively illustrated the close-mindedness and bigotry of the accusers and shed light to the ignorance that surrounds this incident.

There are numerous and varied reactions to this incident. On one side, people call for a boycott and encourage others to put their names as “Merry Christmas” so that the company employees would be forced to say the word Christmas. On the other side, people support the new design and deem this matter as trivial and needless.

This whole controversy is unnecessary, as the most “festive” Starbucks has ever gotten was putting snowflakes and Christmas trees on its holiday cups. It’s unreasonable to equate Starbucks’ inclusion of other beliefs to slandering the Christian religion. This whole situation gives insight to what our society has become: resistant to change and offended at the smallest “offense” to firmly held traditional beliefs.

View Story Comments
Print this Story
More to Discover
More in Community & World
A prominent festival in Indian culture, Diwali holds a special importance in the hearts of people across the world. But for children living in the United States, the celebrations hold a deeper value; many students note that Diwali is a time for them to express their bicultural backgrounds.
Living in the Melting Pot
With the upcoming district election fast-approaching, students express feeling concerned and disoriented regarding their minimal role in the democratic process. Many of these individuals point out that the Round Rock Independent School District (RRISD) election in particular holds the potential to affect them the most, however only a fraction of them are allowed to vote and actively take part in it.
Students Comment On Role In Democratic Process
Smiling brightly at a fundraiser, Ms. Linnie LaMaster stands with her teen volunteers for ATX Kids Club. Ms. LaMaster emphasizes how important fundraising is when running a non-profit. “People don’t think about how expensive it can be to run a camp. We rely a lot on fundraising and donors so we can continue to give it back to the kids,” Ms. LaMaster said.
Adventures in Austin
Standing behind their decorated booth at the Spooktacular, Fiber Arts Club members entertain a customer during one of their sales. The club sold a variety of personally-crafted plushies and key chains during the event.
YMCA's Spooktacular Event Promotes Student-Led Initiatives
The shooting took place in an H-E-B parking lot on Wednesday, Oct. 23. The scene involved police officers, H-E-B workers, and multiple parties. "I noticed on my way in that there was a girl and she was yelling at the police officer," London May '26 said. "You would think an altercation had happened because the police separated the parties."
Students Witness Shooter’s Escape
In preparation for the upcoming RRISD elections, many community members have found themselves researching about and assessing the four propositions on the ballot. Each proposition provides a detailed breakdown of its diverse aims, and is allocated a set amount of money derived from the larger proposed bond.
“Students Are Finally Being Acknowledged”