--- title: Starbucks Holiday Cup Controversy Mocked With #ItsJustACup description: Starbucks cup defenders shared photos of the new holiday cups on social media with the hashtag #ItsJustACup. canonical: https://time.com/4109109/starbucks-cup-itsjustacup/ author: Alexandra Sifferlin article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-11T21:02:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:39:54.373Z og:title: Starbucks Holiday Cup Controversy Mocked With #ItsJustACup og:description: The backlash is getting its own backlash og:url: https://time.com/4109109/starbucks-cup-itsjustacup/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt067ea70a855ec056/69887012f887dc6988e9334f/starbucks_red_holiday_cups_2015.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3863 og:image:height: 2173 og:image:alt: Starbucks_Red_Holiday_Cups_2015 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Starbucks Holiday Cup Controversy Mocked With #ItsJustACup twitter:description: The backlash is getting its own backlash twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt067ea70a855ec056/69887012f887dc6988e9334f/starbucks_red_holiday_cups_2015.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Starbucks Holiday Cup Controversy Mocked With #ItsJustACup > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture recommendation newsletter, edited by culture editor Eliza Berman. Each week it surfaces the books, shows, films and ideas TIME's editors think are worth your attention, and explains why. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Does TIME have a culture newsletter? Yes. Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published weekly. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=8c1b71fe-2432-4c4f-ae1c-46e3e557e6a6&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Starbucks Accused of 'War on Christmas' With Cup Design [Watch (HLS stream): Starbucks Accused of 'War on Christmas' With Cup Design](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/j4xAt45I.m3u8) (0:50)  _Published 2015-11-08. Some Christians are outraged that Starbucks' latest holiday cup features a plain red design instead of explicit references to Christmas._ by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Nov 11, 2015 9:02 PM UTC by [Alexandra Sifferlin](https://time.com/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Nov 11, 2015 9:02 PM UTC Starbucks’ 2015 holiday cups were criticized by [some Christians who argued the new design lacked Christmas symbolism](http://time.com/4104107/starbucks-holiday-cup-christians/) seen on cups in years past. The protest spread on social media, but now the backlash is getting its own backlash, with Starbucks cup defenders sharing photos of the new cups on social media with the hashtag #ItsJustACup. Some Twitter users even listed a variety of social issues that their authors believe people should care more about than the design of a coffee cup. Here are a few examples: > [](https://twitter.com/HilsAmanda/status/663788354232684544) > [](https://twitter.com/Ostrov%5FA/status/664078984871833600) > [](https://twitter.com/Genevieve%5FKay/status/664460593361911809) > [](https://twitter.com/hey%5Fits%5Fmanders/status/664086394885787649) > [](https://twitter.com/SHELBERT/status/663918095677808640) > [](https://twitter.com/yettagibson/status/663762313367818240) **Read more:** [See How This Year’s Starbucks Holiday Cup Is Different From the Past](http://time.com/4105283/starbucks-holiday-cups-evolution/) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] Some Christians are outraged that Starbuck's holiday cup is without images of Christmas or Jesus Christ, opting instead for a fairly plain red design. In a Facebook post, one of the leaders of the campaign against the cups said, Starbucks removed Christmas from the cups because they hate Jesus. Looking at past cups, it's not as if they featured openly religious symbols before. A christmas tree seems to be the most explicit Starbuck's got. The cups are winning some to call for a boycott, while others are calling for customers to say their name as Merry Christmas so baristas are forced to say it. Meanwhile, others support the sup design recede as trivial. In a press release, the vice president of design and content said, " Starbucks has become a place of sanctuary during the holidays. We're embracing the simplicity an the quietness of it. It's a more open way to usher in the holiday. Earlier this year, Starbucks launched its Race Together campaign to get customers talking about racism. 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