Starbucks shouldn’t be on the naughty list

Starbucks doesn’t hate Christmas or Jesus. They just want to serve coffee.

The secular coffee chain unveiled a bare two-toned red cup with only the logo as decoration as this year’s “holiday cup.”

“Starbucks has become a place of sanctuary during the holidays,” Jeffrey Fields, Starbucks vice president of design and content, said in a news release. “We’re embracing the simplicity and the quietness of it. It’s a more open way to usher in the holiday.”

Some on social media and Donald Trump say otherwise. Some Christians are upset that Starbucks is stripping away Christmas, ignoring the fact that the stores sell Advent calendars and Christmas-blend coffee.

Traditionally, the red seasonal cup would have symbols of winter and/or holiday elements, like ornaments or reindeer, since its inception in 1997.

Starbucks’ new holiday cup isn’t a symbol of the “War on Christmas.” It is meant to be inclusive, something everyone, of every religion, can share.

But the biggest fact remains: It’s just a cup.

This story was originally published November 11, 2015 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Starbucks shouldn’t be on the naughty list."