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Yesterday afternoon, Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping went to the Astor Place Cube to protest Starbucks' refusal to let Ethiopia to trademark coffees. The Ethiopian government tried to trademark coffee names, like Sidamo, Harar, and Yirgacheffe, which could bring nearly $100 million to farmers, but the US Patent and Trademark Office denied Ethiopia's trademark applications. Reverend Billy was arrested and taken to the 9th Precinct; we're guessing the Starbucks across from the Cube wasn't too happy about it.
Many have accused Starbucks of squashing the Ethiopian government's trademark attempt. Starbucks has denied this and actually issued a YouTube response from Starbucks' Dub Hay. The thing is, the coffee trade group National Coffee Association actually filed opposition to Ethiopia's trademark...and the Accidental Hedonist points out that the NCA's Government Affairs division is chaired by Hay. Hmm.
Photographs of yesterday's protest by dogseat/Eric H. Brown on Flickr
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That's a great action shot of Rev. Billy!
Can't wait until Starbucks and their ilk are no more.
That's the biggest megaphone I've ever seen.
i think its going to be a while, joe.
Starbucks is a cult...
Kidding. Me, I think their products are too costly and over caffeinated, but it's not a cult. Yet.
Great video over at www.revbilly.com. Dig the choir.
Trademark coffee? Don't coffee beans grow on trees?
hey Jen, there are two Starbucks "across" from me, three if you count the one in Barnes & Noble.
I actually read a really in-depth piece on the Starbucks/Ethiopia controversy over at Slashdot. Essentially, the actually trademark would belong to the Ethiopian government and the money would be kept by the regime and not passed along to the farmers. Starbucks alleges that they are able to get more money to the actual growers without having to pay licensing fees to the Ethiopian gvt. This actually sounds pretty credible to me.
My name is Mike, and I do not work for the Starbucks corporation.
I do, however, enjoy a nice warm mocha on a cold winter day.
protest Starbucks' refusal to let Ethiopia to trademark coffees.
Sorry Mike D, but it's just easier if we assume Starbucks is bad and the Ethiopian government is good, ok? Big corporation versus government of poor African nation - it's easy. Thinking about what's actually going on upsets the anti-Starbucks mojo.