A TikToker went viral on the platform after recording a Starbucks employee who told him he was no longer welcome in their store. The user, Damon (@damonskate), asked his followers if he should file a discrimination lawsuit against the fast-food coffee giant.
Damon regularly posts skateboarding videos on his account, and some commenters said that they’ve experienced instances where skaters who either rode their boards inside or immediately outside a Starbucks location have been banned from those particular locations. However, Damon claims he is still unsure as to why he is no longer allowed at that location.
The TikToker’s interaction with the Starbucks employee garnered over 46,000 likes and 2,100 comments, with many commenters telling the skater that they sided with the worker.
@damonskate After already being handed my order by other employees this man comes out of no wear and has this to say….. what yall think should i file that discrimination lawsuit??? @Starbucks #discriminationawareness #starbucks #houstontx #77007 ♬ original sound – Damon
The clip begins with the employee standing still and looking at Damon, answering his questions in an even-toned fashion.
“Say that again, repeat that for me?” Damon says.
“You’re not welcome in our store,” the Starbucks employee replies.
“For what reason?” Damon asks.
“There was a complaint against you,” the employee explains.
“I’m sorry sir, what complaint?” the TikToker questions, before the worker turns around and silently walks away from the counter, no longer indulging Damon’s questions. The skater walks alongside the counter to follow the employee and ask them further questions.
“It’s that bad, is that it? Are you walking away now? I don’t understand,” he asks as the employee goes through doors behind the counter, presumably to the backroom kitchen area of the store. “OK,” he concludes, as the worker disappears.
Damon writes in the caption for the video, “After already being handed my order by other employees this man comes out of no wear and has this to say….. what yall think should i file that discrimination lawsuit???”
Many viewers who saw the post told Damon that they sided with the employee and reminded him that because businesses are privately owned operations the second they tell a customer they aren’t welcomed in a store then they are trespassing.
“He was very calm abt it, he said once ‘you’re not welcomed’ now get out,” one user argued.
“They’re not just gonna randomly say you can’t come into Starbucks of all places,” another claimed, referencing Damon’s claim of discrimination.
“What part didn’t you understand?” a third user asked the TikToker.
Some TikTok users referred to the TikToker as a “Karen,” with many ignoring his claims of discrimination in the caption for the video.
“I loved how the employee ignored Karen. that’s the best way… don’t engage with……’..’ our time is valuable,” one user wrote.
“They have the right to refuse service at any point to any customer just take your stuff and leave and call corporate to get your answer instead of,” a second added.
“I work in the service industry and I do the same. I let someone else handle the Karens & Kevins. not enough pay to deal with rude people,” a further viewer shared.
While one user argued that people don’t get banned from stores “very easily,” Damon responded in a comment. He said he is “still clueless” as to why he was told he wasn’t welcome in the store, and other users said he had “ever[y] right to ask what the reason is.”
While there is no listed policy against folks bringing skateboards into Starbucks’ on the company’s website, there was an incident in 2015 where a fight broke out in one of the chain’s coffee shops where someone was struck with a skateboard in the head. The man later died from his injuries.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Damon via TikTok comment for further information.
