Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office has filed a federal lawsuit against Starbucks accusing the coffee company violating federal and state laws prohibiting race discrimination.
The lawsuit, filed February 11 in federal court in St. Louis, alleges Starbucks enforces race-and-sex-based hiring practices, unlawfully segregates employees and provides exclusive training and employment benefits to select groups in violation of anti-discrimination laws.
“As Attorney General, I have a responsibility to protect Missourians from a company that actively engages in systemic race and sex discrimination,” Bailey said in a press release. “Racism has no place in Missouri.
“We’re filing suit to halt this blatant violation of the Missouri Human Rights Act in its tracks.”
As the complaint notes, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled two years ago that federal law prohibits discrimination based on race.
“Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it,” the complaint states, quoting the 2023 Supreme Court ruling in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. Pres. and Fellows of Harvard Coll.