Recently, it was announced that K-Pop group NCT had collaborated with coffee chain Starbucks.
Yet, not all NCTzens were happy about this new collaboration.
Since October, the death toll in the Gaza Strip has reportedly surpassed 34,000 due to Israeli attacks. The surviving Palestinians in Gaza are struggling to survive as over 77K are injured, starving, displaced, and lost homes, family, and friends.
Around 1 in every 25 Palestinians in Gaza are now injured or dead, Islamic Relief says as Israel’s bombardment continues unabated.
— ReliefWeb
More people worldwide are becoming aware of this humanitarian crisis and hoping to do their part in making a difference. So, BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) is an entity that has helped identify brands that should be targeted in boycotts. The Palestinian BDS National Committee shared a list of brands to boycott, placing them in categories. Popular fast-food chains, such as McDonald’s and Starbucks, are organic targets, although the latter was not on BDS’s boycott list.
The BDS movement did not initiate these grassroots boycott campaigns but is in support of them due to these brands openly supporting Israel’s genocide against Palestinians.
— BDS on organic boycott targets
In October 2023, the worker-led union of Starbucks, representing at least 9,000 employees, shared a post via X (formerly Twitter). In the statement, Starbucks Workers United stood in solidarity with Palestine.
As of June 2023, over 8,000 workers at over 360 Starbucks stores in at least 40 states in the United States have voted to unionize, primarily with Workers United. As of March 2023 none have yet enacted a collective bargaining agreement.
— Wikipedia
Starbucks Workers United stands with Palestine. pic.twitter.com/A0Rg63b7sp
— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) October 20, 2023
Shortly after, Starbucks released its own statements, which denounced the union. Starbucks did not want to be associated with the union’s stance.
Starbucks wanted to stop the union from using its name and logo, saying the company had no official stance on the war and the union’s post might confuse customers. But many boycotters, like Blake, thought Starbucks should offer more support to the people of Gaza.
— AP News
Starbucks then sued its employees on October 18 for trademark infringement. The company claimed the social media post angered its customers and had the potential to damage the company’s reputation. Starbucks’ actions only disappointed customers.
Since then, Starbucks has been boycotted worldwide as customers thought it was unethical of Starbucks to sue its employees for their stance on the humanitarian issue. Consequently, Starbucks lost $ 12 billion USD in market value, with some locations even closing and filing bankruptcy in many countries.
Many people do not understand but Boycott has caused Starbucks alone to lose $ 12 Billion and many of the Starbucks are being closed due to that.
Boycott works
Watch the video 🚨 pic.twitter.com/UZk71GdPx1
— William B. (@The_NightReport) December 25, 2023
Recently, Workers United and Starbucks began discussions to build “a productive relationship in the best interests of Starbucks partners.” Still, many are continuing to boycott the coffee chain.
We have agreed with Workers United that we will begin discussions on a foundational framework designed to achieve collective bargaining agreements, including a fair process for organizing, and the resolution of some outstanding litigation.
— Starbucks
A giant step forward made possible by thousands and thousands of us joining together and speaking out…
🚨THIS IS HUGE.🚨 pic.twitter.com/zZZ57Am0Bm
— Starbucks Workers United (@SBWorkersUnited) February 27, 2024
So, when the NCT x Starbucks collaboration was announced, NCTzens reminded fellow fans of the Starbucks boycott amid the ongoing genocide in Palestine.
Hello, SM Entertainment
We do NOT want NCT DREAM or any of your artists to associate or promote STARBUCKS or any companies that are financing a genocide in Palestine.
Please take note of our concerns.@SMTOWNGLOBAL @NCTsmtown @NCTsmtown_DREAM @SMTOWN_Idn #SM_BOYCOTT_GENOCIDE pic.twitter.com/gAHbcDCMSx
— ًً (@LJNFEED) May 29, 2024
Now, one NCT member has seemingly spoken out regarding the group’s Starbucks collaboration.
Taeyong shocked the fandom when he updated his Instagram Story with a black background and the word “Boycott” on it. Many shared screenshots from different phones, proving its authenticity.
The post was quickly deleted. Still, many netizens screenshotted it and expressed their pride that Taeyong had shown his solidarity and taken a stance despite currently being enlisted in mandatory military service. It’s suspected his company, SM Entertainment, took it down.
LOL, it must be people from SM who delete it!
Thank you for take a stand and speak up, Lee Taeyong. I will continue boycott the product!✊🏻— 🌹Nyo (@ty_cherie) May 30, 2024
taeyong deleted his story so i have compiled several time-stamped screenshots of it. it remained up for about 20 mins pic.twitter.com/DhHzn20i48
— raise your head and look up at the stars (@podofskywhales) May 30, 2024
Taeyong has stopped drinking SB since the boycott started and now even he’s in the military and has only few hours to use his phone he’s still being the only one who speak up and posting it on his IG declaring that he’s indeed boycotting sb and NOT supporting any collaboration. pic.twitter.com/kR4F4pMq1v
— Din (@Ieetaesthetic) May 30, 2024
While Taeyong cannot update bubble/Lsyn at this time, a resurfaced message from October 2023 is going viral, with 381.8K views at the time of writing. In the message, Taeyong said that although he is the leader and people have lots of expectations and demands, he has no actual authority since he is not in charge of his company.
Because I’m the leader, there are a lot of things here and there that people ask me to do…. I’m not the one who started the company…
— Taeyong
+
Because I’m a leader, there are a lot of things here and there that people ask me to do…. I’m not the one who started the company…
I don’t know much, and I don’t seem to have any authority
Still, I want to thank you all so much for the many ideas here and there
— NCT BUBBLE (@_NCTBUBBLE_) October 9, 2023
The resurfaced post only earned Taeyong more praise from NCTzens, realizing he probably took great risks to make his voice heard on the controversial boycott.
And he still posted something about it. He also has influence over his group, and you all know that. So let’s not act blind. Yes, we blame SM 100%, but reaching out to our favorite artists is important too.
— Raven (@CloudxRaven) May 30, 2024
여러분은 자신의 의견을 어필하면 되는거지만 이 사람은 지금 국방의 의무를 다하고있는 군인 신분인데 다른 나라의 정치상황에 대해 군인이 개인적 의견을 왈가왈부한다는 게 얼마나 상황을 위태롭게 하는 행동인 지 아시나요 그건 가수를 사랑하기에 하는 행동이 아닙니다https://t.co/jyVwcCSC7B
— 더쿠 (@kokorella2) May 30, 2024
You can express your opinions, but do you know how dangerous it is for a soldier to voice his personal opinion on the political situation in another country when he is doing his duty in defense?…
keinget waktu taeyong live bilang “people may think i’m naive and ignorant person…. i try to learn a lot from the other people and be respectful and empathetic”
and taeyong proves that!!! thank you taeyong☹️🫶🏻 pic.twitter.com/wr1Zm3IwGX
— #BLOSSOM (@shalalanim) May 30, 2024
Read more about the boycott below.
NCT Fans Announce A Boycott Of The Group’s Latest Brand Endorsement In Support Of Palestine
Source: HAARETZ
