Starbucks Apologizes After 2 Black Men Arrested In Philadelphia Store, Mayor Responds

A video, which showed police officers arresting two African-American men inside a Starbucks in Philadelphia has now raked up to seven million views.

The video of the incident was first posted by a user named Melissa DePino on Thursday who wrote, “The police were called because these men hadn’t ordered anything. They were waiting for a friend to show up, who did as they were taken out in handcuffs for doing nothing. All the other white people are wondering why it’s never happened to us when we do the same thing.”

In the video, a man can also be heard telling an officer he was going to meet the two men there and asking him as to why they were being arrested. Other customers sitting in the coffee chain could also be heard shouting “they didn’t do anything.”

The reactions to the video were quite strong and a few people were quick to condemn the arrests. The identities of the men were not revealed.

However, in a video statement that was streamed on a Facebook live from Philadelphia Police Department's page, Commissioner Richard Ross defended the arrests and said his officers “did absolutely nothing wrong.”

Ross added Starbucks employees called 911 and reported a trespassing complaint in which they said two men wanted to use the restroom but were told the facilities are available only for paying customers. He added even though the employees asked them to leave, the men refused to do so.

In his statement, Ross also said after officers reached the location they asked the men three times to "politely to leave the location because they were being asked to leave by employees because they were trespassing.” However, when they refused to do so, they were arrested "without incident.”

The two men who remained calm during their arrest were then taken to the station after which they were released as Starbucks refused to press any charges.

"They did a service that they were called to do. And if you think about it logically, that if a business calls and they say that someone is here that I no longer wish to be in my business, (officers) now have a legal obligation to carry out their duties. And they did just that,” Ross said about the officers.

Ross added, “As an African-American male, I am very aware of implicit bias. We are committed to fair and unbiased policing and anything less than that will not be tolerated in this department."

Starbucks also issued an apology for the two men via their official Twitter account.

However, their apologies were not enough for the Mayor of Philadelphia, Jim Kenney, who in his statement criticized Starbucks for their role in the arrests.

"I am heartbroken to see Philadelphia in the headlines for an incident that — at least based on what we know at this point — appears to exemplify what racial discrimination looks like in 2018. For many, Starbucks is not just a place to buy a cup of coffee, but a place to meet up with friends or family members, or to get some work done. Like all retail establishments in our city, Starbucks should be a place where everyone is treated the same, no matter the color of their skin. Commissioner Ross and his team have promised a review of their policies moving forward with regards to response to complaints like this. I believe a thorough review is fully warranted given the unfortunate outcome of this event, particularly at a time when our criminal justice reform efforts are focused on avoiding needless incarcerations."