Starbucks closed all of its stores on Tuesday to conduct nationwide racial sensitivity training for 8,000 employees after two black men were arrested for declining to buy coffee in Philadelphia.
The city of Philadelphia has since settled with the two men for a symbolic $1 and a promise to donate funds to an entrepreneur program for youth.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the rapper Common (pictured) provides the narration for a series of videos that will be played during the training.
Common is best known for his social raps, and his roles in film and television. He won a 2015 Oscar for a song he contributed to the film “Selma,” and has also won Emmy and Grammy awards.
During an appearance on ABC‘s Good Morning America on Tuesday, Common called for more accountability beyond today’s racial sensitivity training.
“We’ve got to hold Starbucks accountable and we hold our political officials accountable, any businesses that we support and we hold ourselves accountable. So that’s why I’m a part of this conversation,” he said.
The 46-year-old rapper said it is important to “have a black man standing up and saying what we need.”
“Starbucks was just a microcosm of how black people have been dehumanized and I wanted to be a part of that conversation,” he said.
Photo by DARA / BACKGRID
Why does Common look like those basketball players daddy!
Commons new look shows his age…
Hate his porn stache. Im not sure what is going on with him…he looks a mess. Do better Lonnie.
LaVar Ball!! I thought it was him too!???
Yeah that is his name.
On GMA this morning, he said the stash was for a movie, set in the 70s. It does, look horrid!
Being a celebrity makes you qualified to do all sorts of things. No training necessary. Oh, he just narrating. These headlines are so …
Did Common give you permission to use his government name?
porn stache??? Take me now… *Clutching my chest like Fred G Sanford*
Do a post on Roseanne Barr calling a black person an ape.
“Porn Stache” ???? LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO
Can we get an open post. My client canceled and I am bored.
Common look all of 55 years old
Lmao, I dont ever leave comments but I thought that was LaVar ball too!
Funny thing is…white ppl always compares us to apes when in reality, there body makeup is more primate. The longer arms…long waist…I can go on.
straight hair, thin lips.. I have yet to see an ape with a fro..
No. It would have made sense to have those two black males aipart of this symposium/training as well. Be sure to include the employees who made bad decisions and ask what they were thinking, literally. What made you call the cops to escalate a seemingly basic situation?
Common. Rhetoric. You want to impact or make change then speak to the people who were impacted. Common is a celebrity spokesperson.
Teach them and take that money
See, there you go!
Red asses
Really? a day gonna educate people.. Give me my Caffe Con Latte and fuck off..
Racism WILL NOT be tolerated that’s why ABC just cancelled the revived series Roseanne!
U can’t train out racism, u can put a mask over it, but eventually it will show itself once again.
ion think that is Common in that first pic
Nope…dont like that mustache on Common. He must be growing it out for a movie or at least I hope so.
I never understood the hype over this dude here.
I was SO happy they did. The audacity of that woman saying something so completely disrespectful. The more people are held accountable for negative behavior, the more change we’ll see.
Good for Common. Now can he (and his kind) stop using the N-word so that the same baristas expected to treat Black me with dignity don’t go home and sing N-words all night with their favorite rapper?
And they smell like wet ape too.
SAMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE HEREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!
Has he always had the ‘stache? No bueno.
HOLLERED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
*Crine* log out please and come back later.
porn stache. *CRINE*
On the floor over here myself.
Since Rosanne has some free time on her hands she should go to Starbucks Racial-Bias training course
I get put out anytime Im on here for more than an hour I sweah!! I need to limit my thoughts to 45 minutes and leave! https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5a16feb7886870b58e876a7ffc6b264e7419e743bb55ec579123b82d4a427799.gif
The fact that he now looks like somebody daddy in itself is funny
Kanye needs to hang with Common to see what “giving back to the community” looks like.
Well, he’s turning into a very good actor. I’ve seen him in a couple of movies, small parts and surprised at how good he is. As a rapper — I don’t know? But he’s a great social activist.
Noooo… please don’t go!!! Lol
me too!!
The color of a chimpanzee’s skin is white, once you shave all that hair.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fd14ea9bfb01fd3ee47c10f2cd50ef0c2fe6bf5b7e30dd1aa517af2e22377ed9.gif
I spit out my juice!!! LMAO
Common looking kinda common right now…I want to know how he gets a hold of all of these beautiful women only to let them slip away…I think he has “small equipment”…
This is the first time Common actually looks old to me
I passed by my local Starbucks and couldn’t help but laugh. Good for them! Yt folk love their coffee.
Common looks like my Uncle Junior and yours too! LOL
this is stupid
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3cd01ee9ba08e5052c98809dd182e243ba8b1b874f09052af3738f0cd154d17d.gif
Man! I swear I was just about to type that lol.
LOLLOLLOL!!!!!! (Scrolls back up to take a look)
Exactly! He’s doing the most..his presence was not needed
Lmao
Sigh…. Starbucks knew they couldn’t just apologize and do nothing but instead of diversity training which no one gives two shyts about how about a get fired on the spot policy for harassing or calling cops on customers unnecessarily. Losing that paycheck will teach them quicker than a bunch of words narrated by Common…
Lol
I swear I thought that was him. I’m like what’s he doing there ????
You must not listen to hip hop, Common is a great lyricist.
I do listen to hip hop and grew up on hip hop & was never impressed like I said.
Chile she’ll be in there eating all the pastries and not paying attention to the message
Right! She ain’t learned nothing and ain’t sorry for shyt
Serious training needs serious and certified trainers. Cultural bias , implicit bias/competency are real topics and fields of study. With research done by real psychologist. I feel using a rapper diminishes the seriousness and necessity of the training
Oh wow. Didn’t know that!!
Who impresses you? ( super curious)
True, but once you provide the tools needed to overcome the displays of racism, you can begin to hold everyone accountable. There are no more excuses. I used to create and administer this type and other types of training. You can’t change a person, but you can educate them about a standard of conduct and then hold them accountable if they do not display it
Common is so gay!!