Is This SNL Skit About Starbucks Racist? (Yep)

Christopher Robbins

Published Jan 20, 2013

Modified Jan 20, 2013

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Christopher Robbins

Published Jan 20, 2013

Modified Jan 20, 2013

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Last night's pre-taped "Starbucks Verismo" sketch struck us (and others) as being pretty racist for asserting that black Starbucks employees are incompetent and stupid.

The set up for the bit is a commercial for an at-home, Keurig-esque machine called Verismo that would simulate all the miseries of going to an actual Starbucks. After the Verismo bungles the cheery, white lady's order, the voice-over introduces us to "Verquanica, a larger non-functioning machine for Verismo to talk to about you."

We have no experience writing comedy, but it seems that executing this skit without the racist machine voices would be easy enough. The scattered sugar packet milk mess is a start—let's say Verismo also conjures up grad students and tourists on your couch who steal your WiFi and refuse to purchase anything. And maybe it creates an insanely long line for your bathroom (that now constantly reeks of feces), and the machine also pipes Christmas songs performed by Death Cab For Cutie into your kitchen. And sure, the machine screws up your name and order but there are a variety of machine voices doing so (and they're not named "Verquanica"). That's a perfectly mediocre SNL premise.

But this isn't a thought-provoking riff on the absurdity of racist language, or a heart-breakingly sharp observation about racism in America, or complicated art that is worth strenuous debate. It's just lazy.

Some people (15-year-olds, etc.) did enjoy it though:

Finally, a funny SNL skit that slams Starbucks barristas.a tad racist?perhaps.But a wake-up call to Seattle that their staff can suck

— jingleblues (@jingleblues) January 20, 2013

Thanks Racism, for finally making my coffee purchasing ritual a little easier (and my Pop Chips tastier). Nope.

Tagged

comedy

racism

saturday night live

snl

starbucks

Christopher Robbins

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Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.

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