Counterparts. You may have seen this week that the Starbucks CoffeeCompany Announced a new initiative called race together. In encourages employees to engage in conversations about raise with people buying coffee. You may think this is a good approach, or you may disagree with it. For the first 45 minutes, we want to discuss what this means for Race Relations. If you live in the eastern are central time zone, 202 7488000 is the number four calling in. 202 7488001 if you live in the amount no pacific zone. If you want to post on twitter journal cspan. Org. On facebook, facebook. Com cspan. Or you can send us an email, journal cspan. Org. If you go to the companys website, it you can read the press release and why they are doing it. Race together is what employees have been voluntarily writing on cups this week. If you got a copy of a copy of usa today there was a pullout on Race Relations. It also has a picture of that ceo of starbucks as he was talking to members of his company about this effort. It was on their website where Howard Schultz talked a little bit about the philosophy behind this initiative. [video clip] mr. Schultz we should come together and provide some opportunity to discuss this as a group of people. Ive had people say to me, i have a subject that i think you should touch. The issue of Race Relations and what this could turn into. If we keep going about our business, and ringing the starbucks register every day and ignoring this, then i think in a sense we are part of the problem. I do not feel, candidly, staying quiet as a company, and in this holding is who we are and who i want us to be. Host there is a little bit of the philosophy behind the scenes of this race together initiative, again, an effort by starbucks to engage in conversations about race in the United States. Perhaps you have thoughts on it whether you agree or disagree with it. I get, the number, 202 7488000 four people in the eastern and central time zones. 202 7488001 for those in the mountain pacific time zones. Posts on i cspan page on twitter, cspanwj. Facebook. Com cspan is how you leave thoughts there. You can send an email at journal cspan. Org. Part of this pullout in usa today has a lot of features. When did you first become aware of race . There is also quays, a true or false quiz asking about race. Again, all in the means of fostering conversation and tak ing a look at this issue. Do you have thoughts on this whether you agree with it, disagree, or not sure. We will start in new york. James. James, what do you think of this effort that starbucks is doing . Caller in my opinion, personal opinion, i dont think it makes any difference, either way. You walk into starbucks with an opinion about race, you order a cup of coffee, and they Start Talking to you about race. At the end of the day, when that person takes a cup of coffee and walks out the door, they will have the same opinion. The person at the counter will move on to the next guy. It just doesnt matter. How you feel is how you feel. In my personal opinion, i was raised i had filipino friends, puerto rican friends, i didnt see color. Thats just my personal opinion. Host again, your thoughts on this initiative. We heard and from one in new york. Mike is in tallahassee, florida. What do you think . Caller its a good start. Summaries companies be diverse these. All kinds of people. Maybe they could start right there. Hiring different people. Its a good conversation. Good thing. Host do you think it will change opinions Going Forward . Mike has left us. You heard the previous comment from of your, a viewer. One of the people who chimed in on this was Kareem Abduljabbar. He said again, Kareem Abduljabbar weighing in on Time Magazine website. You can see it there. 202 7488000 for those of you in the eastern and central time zones. 202 7488001, mountain pacific time zones. Conversations are happening on our social Media Channels including our facebook page, facebook. Com cspan. Ms. Launched this week, this launch this week, you heard the ceo of starbucks talking little bit about it. Employees voluntarily writing race together on cups. Charles and arkansas. What do you think of this effort . Caller we were doing great with Race Relationships until this president basically was elected. I didnt vote for him. When he got in, i thought this will actually help. He has done the complete opposite. The people that he has selected that have been in his cabinet have done completely the opposite. Host what do you think of Companies Like starbucks taking up this issue . Not even specifically this Initiative Companies engaging in conversation. Caller well, i havent been back into the store for for five days since it started, so i cant tell you. Host do you think it is an appropriate venue to have this kind of conversation . Caller no, i dont think they better start reading all the people that are smart and have a great attitude towards race. Instead of listening to what the president and his minions come up with. Host paul on twitter says, im not a fan of the coffee, but this idea is very positive. We are all members of the human race and that is what matters. You may agree with paul, you may have thoughts like the previous caller, or thoughts of your own. Brooklyn, new york. Go ahead please. Caller yes, i think it would open up a conversation about racism in our country. For some reason, there is a denial now. Its only because the population has been dumbed down to the true history of the United States of america. Obviously, its not going to make any major difference. As you hear, racist people have their views and is not going to change. But, it will keep in the forefront that there is a racial problem in the United States. The better conversation could be something around those people going to their elected officials and changing the laws and the Economic Situation that generate conflict between people economic, educational, and jobs. If it would generate a conversation around that, and they can start by making sure they pay people more than the minimum wage, that would be a great example. Host what do you think of these kinds of conversations taking place in coffee shops . Does it helps . Caller it of a matter of its a coffee shop where the bus. As americans, we should be communicating about challenges happening in our country all the time. The fact that people have a problem with talking about that anywhere shows you, and documents, and proves the racial problem in the United States. It is on the ludicrous for anybody in 2015 to be vague about the history of this country. It is a reality. Black folks are not looking to just move around white people because of the color of their skin its about economics housing, education, and the ability to raise a family is a real issue. Somehow, racist people think we just want to wrap around our arms around them. We are trying to make our own community. In new york, we are fighting with elected officials now to protect our families from police brutality. Elected officials are hedging on not doing that. It is a systemic problem that goes past a coffee shop. Host that was vincent from brooklyn, new york, giving his thoughts this morning on the initiative from starbucks. He mentioned legislators. Some legislators this week weighing in. From michigan, Steve Stockman saying, wait, implying that your customers are racist is it popular. Rep is it a menu cleaver saying in the face of so much conflict its warming to see an effort rooted in dialogue. Lots of thoughts on this this morning, you may want to add yours. Ron from pontiac, illinois, go ahead. Caller good morning. I think it would be very healthy in the context what i would do is i would go in and start with the Democratic Party from the compromise of 1850 the civil rights to the Civil Rights Act and i would include and my question to him [inaudible] host i apologize, ron, your line is breaking up. From kentucky, pat, go ahead. Caller i would say its probably not any good because youre hardcore races are going to go in to starbucks in the first place. The only way i could say in doing any good is the teenagers or Something Like that, but they dont drink coffee. If youre a hardcore race this i doubt you would even go into starbucks. Host are you a starbucks customer . Caller no, they dont have them in my area. Host i was going ask you if someone engaged you in that kind of conversation in a coffee line somewhere, would you feel inclined to even have such a conversation . Caller no, probably not. When you go to get a cup of coffee youre thinking about going to work, or whatever youre not thinking about discussing race at that time in the morning, whatever. I dont think i would want to talk politics when i get my coffee. Host lets hear from mike. Mike is in st. Cloud, minnesota. How are you . Caller i am fine. How about yourself . Host fine. Go ahead. Caller theres no problem. An honest conversation is the problem. People are afraid to approach the subject. You get to a certain point in the conversation, and there is anger and resentment things that we cant get past. A lot of people dont know how to be honest about how they really feel because they are a e afraid to offend each other. The feeling is animosity pain. Honest history of the past is a lot of people dont want to expose the history. A lot of people dont want to have a honest conversation black or white. Blackstone one twoo say things blackstone want to say things. A lot of things blacks will say may cause people to be uncomfortable. Host even if you take it to coffee shop, you think of a conversation happens, there is a point where it becomes uncomfortable and people wont want to engage further in a neutral place like a coffee shop . Caller the problem with that is a lot of the people they really need to have a conversation are probably on the lower economic scale in the beginning. Therefore, theyre not going to starbucks in the first wave. People who go to starbucks are may be intelligent enough to have the conversation. They may be would have a decent conversation. They would be further down on the economic scale anyway. You know what i mean. It may help, but the people who really need to have the conversation are going into starbucks. They probably need to expand into other places. That would probably be a more beneficial would be more beneficial. Host terry adding to the conversation on twitter saying coffee and conversation makes sense. Aaron schock republican representative from illinois and announcing his resignation this week. Washington post announcing that the Justice Department is investigating. Saying, it is not clear how far along the investigation is. Shock spending from his taxpayers and campaign accounts on some mileage reimbursement. Preston from omaha, nebraska. We are talking about this initiative from starbucks called race together look at Race Relations. What do you think of it . Caller i think you should talk about Race Relations. If you dont talk about it, its acting like it doesnt exist. And ignoring something never solves anything. I work for a Public Company, and i went to a company a couple of weeks ago, and the alarm went off. I work for delivery company. They got where you can get in, push a code to get into the door. I got in there and the motion detector went off. Justice be the story up, i was talking to a white friend of mine and i told him i was in a place when the alarm went off, delivering packages. I came out and some sheriff would have been there and saw me with my little electric device in my hand you know, i was just kidding that he might have shot me, or whatnot. You know whats going on in this country. Host what do you think of starbucks Companies Like starbucks taken up issues overall . Caller if a Public Company is going to take up overall its a good thing. It does bring out into the public. Its not saying that people are braces that come in the starbucks. Its saying that they are trying to bring to the forefront an issue that has always been there. The president , being black in this country has brought it all the way up to the forefront. Now can be dealt with. You can deal with the problem that you act like doesnt exist. Its hard for white people to talk about because it doesnt affect that many. If they talk about in the wrong way, they may face being auster sties ostracized from their groups, given the cold shoulder. Talk about the wrong way, dont go along with the program. They have to be careful about the way they come to the conversation. Host thank you from nebraska. Edward from d. C. Go ahead. Caller good morning. I had opportunity to go to starbucks this friday. I didnt get into a conversation about race. I think that the priest at the starbucks have the baristas at starbucks are put in danger by possibly going into an inflammatory conversation. Possibly any barista at starbuck has Better Business since then the ceo. Host thomas is up next from maryland. Go ahead. Caller hello, how are you doing . As far as discussing race, i dont want to talk to blacks about anything. Ive fed up with them. They are rude, violent and very racist. I dont want anything to do with them. They are being given ever every opportunity in this country possible, and theres still whining, crying. Here all the black colors calling in. They make a hero out of this Michael Brown who tried to smash that Police Officers face in. He got what he deserved. Host roger from connecticut. Next. Im sorry, i pushed the wrong button. Roger from new haven. Caller good morning. Im concerned about this starbucks. I think it is a ploy by the company to bring more customers aidin, and by patronizing a certain racial group, its a way to increase their base. I know i go to a starbucks in the new haven area, and you might see maybe one or two black people in there in the morning. From what i see, theyre not have a coffee drinkers. Maybe an afternoon or something, they go in and hang around. You have time to talk like you are in the greek agoura, or something. Thats not the way it works. You might see two black people in there. Its a black community. Really, basically new haven is. Theyre just not coffee people. Host roger, if you go into starbucks in the next few weeks and someone tried to engage in a conversation with you, would you take it up . Caller i wouldnt be current with them, by would probably say, look, i dont think this is an appropriate place. I think by virtue of the fact the go into a coffee place like that, youre going in there to get coffee, you keep on going. You are not there to be stopped. It is not a disco, or place where you meet. Its a place were you go, you purchase coffee. Thats idea. Host that was roger and connecticut. People who looked at the Business Aspect also had all beds. Opeds. Ronmsey from twitter saying this is more about Public Relations than Race Relations. Again, were tying mothers Race Initiative we are talking about this race together initiative. A formal rollout as of yesterday. We are asking your thoughts not only about the initiative, but what it does for the conversation on Race Relations. 202 7488000 for those of you in the eastern and central time zones. 202 7488001 for those of you in the mountain and pacific time zones. There was a survey done on those who do not have Health Insurance and who may be anal penalize. D. 202 7488000 they showed some of the results in graph form this morning. Here are some of the questions. Americans often to go without Health Insurance, face a penalty. Of all currently uninsured those who are unaware of the penalty, 41 . Those who go uninsured when informed of the penalty, 12 . We will hear from the next caller from new mexico. Good morning. Caller good morning. I think it is a great idea. It would help a lot if they would just pray and the death print the definition of racism on the cup so that we are all starting from the same place. I have been following whats going on in lancaster, new york with these football teams and lacrosse teams. Besides from the washington bread school redskins, these are schools, and places for educating people. I would like to see a lot more conversations like that and have people take a look at the conversations going on a month after, new york. In lancaster, new york. Host thomas, go ahead. Caller thanks for cspan and washington journal. Benjamin netanyahu cried about antisemitism and the jewish people, they cried about antisemitism rising around the world. Why do we deny that there is racism in the world . Why shouldnt we talk about a . Host you are saying that with efforts like starbucks trying to foster or push this conversation along, what do you think specifically of that . Caller eisai i say its a start. It may not be the best, or the worst. Like i said, you hear the cries of antisemitism all across israel and the jewish world. And we deny it in the United States. Host samuel from california. Your next. Good morning. Caller good morning. My dads heritage is jewish. My mom is native american. I think that diverse the is great. I dont think you need coffee to tell you to love your fellow man. You should know that in your heart. I think its good that theyre doing this, but you should already know that you should love everybody no matter what. Thats the way i feel about it. Host not only did he hear legislators earlier weighing in on this, people from the media world as well. One person saying, i dont need a 16yearold barista to lecture me. Crystal right, i think ill go into starbucks today and see if my order for nonblack is rejected based on