A red cup. Recently, this simple, inanimate object has created quite a bit of controversy in the news and social media. To most people, Starbucks’ infamous red cup creates feelings of warmth and comfort during the holiday season. But this holiday season, the popular red cup is brewing strife among many religious groups.

Followers of the Christian faith claim that Starbucks is causing a “War on Christmas” because the company made the decision to go with a simple ombré red design rather than the usual icons of snowflakes, presents, and Christmas trees.  

However, is Starbucks really causing this so-called “War on Christmas?” Or are the people making these allegations really the ones causing this “war”? These groups are coming across as if they only care about the superficial aspects of Christmas rather than the real reason we celebrate the holiday. We celebrate Christmas, whether you are religious or not, because we want to either honor the birth of Christ, or simply enjoy time with family.

Those superficial aspects are nice, of course, and help create the memories that last a lifetime, but they are not the true meaning of Christmas, which is what those religious groups are suggesting. Let’s take this controversy a step further. Society has the perception that what is on the outside is more important than what is on the inside. Celebrities such as Kylie Jenner or Kim Kardashian are guilty of this by spending an enormous amount of time on their appearance, which gives the public the idea that what’s on the inside doesn’t matter.

In relation to the red cup, people should care about the quality of the coffee they are served, rather than the design of their cup. The design of the cup doesn’t make the coffee taste any differently. It seems childish that people are boycotting Starbucks because the company decided to change up its normal holiday cup and go in a different direction. It seems that the people making the controversial claims are looking for a fight where there isn’t one. Do we really want to start off this holiday season fighting over something that doesn’t even matter? The red design doesn’t have racial slurs or offensive graphics on it. It’s just a simple, plain color.

People are so caught up these days on subtle messages when sometimes, there isn’t a subtle message to be heard. People need to take a step back, relax, and realize that the icons removed were not an attack toward a specific religious group; it was only a business decision. This religious group was so quick to make an attack on this company, when in reality, it isn’t affecting the company negatively; it is affecting the religious group. They are really causing a war on themselves.