Starbucks Employee Suspended For Labeling Black Woman’s Cup ‘Monkey’

Monique Pugh

An employee at a Starbucks in Maryland after being accused of writing the word “Monkey” on the cup of a black female customer’s order.

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The woman, Monique Pugh, said she ordered a Caramel Frappuccino from a Starbucks located in the mall in Annapolis. She gave the employee her name to identify her order — but her name is not what the employee allegedly wrote.

“The lady at the register asked my name and I told her, and that was it,” Pugh told TODAY, adding that she used the Starbucks app to place her order, and then gave the woman at the register her name verbally.

Another barista picked up the drink when it was ready, according to Pugh, before setting it back down and yelling out the name of the drink only.

She said she picked up the cup to see the word “monkey” written on it.

Starbucks Employee Suspended For Labeling Black Woman’s Cup ‘Monkey’

“My heart just drops,” she told TODAY. “It was one of those in-the-moment things where your heart just drops and you’re just like, ‘What?'”

Along with that, she said, her drink was made wrong. That is what she addressed with the barista, a male, who Pugh claimed was “combative.”

“He and I were going back and forth about whether the drink was made correctly and then I had to stop myself and realized ‘monkey’ was written on my cup,” she said, adding she was the only Black person in the Starbucks.

Pugh said she then asked the employee, “Why am I the only Black person in the store and ‘monkey’ is written on my cup?”

The barista just shrugged, she said, telling her it was a mistake.

A representative from Starbucks’ corporate office confirmed the incident took place and that the person who wrote the word “monkey” has been suspended, via TODAY.

The rep went on to say Starbucks has offered to have a sit-down talk with Pugh, but that she has not yet responded.

“This is not a small complaint, it’s not like my coffee was cold or I was missing my croissant,” Pugh told TODAY. “And you couldn’t even leave a message without mispronouncing my name.”

Amit Sehgal from Impeccable Brands sent the apology email from Starbucks to TODAY. It reportedly read as follows:

“While we have investigated the incident and believe that our employee mistakenly labeling your cup in this way, regardless, I understand the hurt and frustration this has caused you,” Sehgal wrote. “We can do better. As an immediate step, I have taken action with the employee and have addressed their behavior with them directly.”

Read More: Starbucks Barista Quit After Horrible Manager Asked Her to Reschedule Putting Her Dog Down

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