If you've been seeing a bunch of ads circulating around on the Internet about Starbucks hosting a "Dreamer Day" special for illegal immigrants, ignore them, because the entire thing is a massive trap.
The fake ads were conjured up by a group of racist conspiracy plotters on 4chan that aimed to strike at Starbucks' support of illegal immigrants and refugees by turning the stores into what one user described as "chaos."
The plan was simple: create deceptive but convincing ads that the coffee giant was giving discounts and free drinks to illegal immigrants on August 11, call in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to different stores, and witness potentially hundreds of people get arrested and deported as a result of this scam.
Here's what some of the tweets and ads that circulated the internet looked like when they first dropped last week:
Don't forget to add, if you use the promo code "notafraid", you get one free grande drink of your choice!!!#BorderFreeCoffee#Undocumented
— James Aspen (@JamesCAspen) August 7, 2017
Hey #dreamers! @starbucks is celebrating #borderfreecoffee day! 8/11 is 40% off for illegals!
— illiberal (@Illiberalality) August 7, 2017
#borderfreecoffee pic.twitter.com/n9AIXPuf1m
— Me Here (@ShortTermEnthus) August 3, 2017
Starbucks promotion on Aug. 11, free coffee for dreamers! #BorderFreeCoffee #Undocumented #Liberty #resist #resisttrump #progress #free pic.twitter.com/dQ9EEIWswm
— James Aspen (@JamesCAspen) August 3, 2017
As you can see, these 4chan users did their homework when it came to spreading the word. Accounts were set up that made it look like they were liberals attempting to spread a good message, doing their best to deceive illegal immigrants that Starbucks' Dreamer Day was in fact legit.
Fortunately, people were quick to point out a couple of errors, including a crucial mistake in one ad that spells 'Frappuccino' incorrectly. Starbucks eventually struck down the ads as false on Twitter as well, leading to a flurry of worrisome tweets and discussions about how a racist and evil group of individuals were able to pull this off.
We're sorry but you've been misinformed. Starbucks is not sponsoring any such event.
— Starbucks Coffee (@Starbucks) August 4, 2017
Spread the word Dreamer Day on August 11 at STARBUCKS is FAKE, People are so horrible and disgusting. https://t.co/vLmeb10pkY
— David Araujo (@davidaraujo766) August 7, 2017
While some of the plotters tried to retaliate at Starbucks by claiming they were on the "wrong side of history" and against illegal immigration for denouncing their fake holiday, mainstream media has now picked up the conspiracy and is doing their part to ensure that nobody falls for this sneaky and malicious scheme.
