Ruptly
"Dozens of people rallied outside Starbucks Korea headquarters in Seoul's Gangnam district on Friday following the company's recent 'Tank Day' marketing promotion scandal. Footage shows protesters symbolically discarding Starbucks tumblers to express a boycott of the brand. Some can also be seen spray painting an X mark on the Starbucks logo and the image of Chung Yong-jin, chairperson of Shinsegae Group, under which Starbucks Korea operates. "We are outraged that a major corporation would use terms like 'Tank Day' and phrases such as 'bang on the desk' around May 18, mocking and undermining the spirit of the Gwangju citizens and students who fought for democracy," one of the protesters, Gwak So-jung, stated. "We cannot stand by and watch such an insulting tragedy," another protester added. The coffee chain giant faced intense public backlash and boycott calls after launching its 'Tank Day' campaign for its new 'Tank' line of large-capacity tumblers on the anniversary of the 1980 Gwangju Democratisation Movement. The 'Tank Day' campaign sparked outrage after its release on May 18, a significant date in the history of the Republic of Korea (ROK). On this exact date in 1980, then-President Chun Doo-hwan deployed armoured tanks and paratroopers into the city of Gwangju to brutally crush student-led pro-democracy protests, resulting in a massacre of hundreds of citizens. The campaign's secondary promotional catchphrase: "Bang on the desk!" which is often written in Korean text mimicking the sound 'Tak!', also invoked the infamous 1987 state torture and murder of 21-year-old student activist Park Jong-chul. ROK President Lee Jae-myung also publicly condemned the campaign as "inhumane conduct by low-grade peddlers who deny basic human rights." Following the marketing disaster, Shinsegae chairperson Chung issued a public apology for the campaign that "deeply hurt the public, the bereaved families, and the victims of the May 18 demonstration". Shinsegae Group, the coffee chain's South Korean licensee, fired Starbucks' local chief executive, Sohn Jung-hyun, this week over the campaign, saying it was inappropriate. The protest was organised by the Korea University Student Progressive Union (Daejinyeon)."
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