Serving People Serving Coffee Since 2005
Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/931664
Publisher Kenneth R. Olson Editor in Chief Sarah Allen Art Director Demitri Fregosi Powers Online Editor Ashley Rodriguez Copy Editors Erin Meister, Chris Ryan Photographer Derek Hofstetler Business Manager Cheryl Lueder Advertising Sales Sarah Allen 800.296.9108 Contributors Emma Bork Jenn Chen Al Higgins Jason "Double J" Johnson RJ Joseph Alex Lambert Lauren Lathrop Phil Markel Erin Meister Rachel Northrop Jessica C. Ornelas Ashley Rodriguez Chris Ryan Freja Sonnichsen Editorial Advisory Board Nora Burkey, The Chain Collaborative Anna Gutierrez, Barista 22 Hidenori Izaki, Samurai Coffee Experience Heather Kelley, Stumptown Coffee Roasters Sam Low, Da Lin Todd Mackey, Bolt Coffee Co. Mike Marquard, Blueprint Coffee Noah Namowicz, Cafe Imports Lorenzo Perkins, Fleet Coffee Sarah Richmond, Equator Coffees + Teas Craig Simon, Think Tank Coffee Jess Steffy, Square One Coffee Teresa von Fuchs, Independent Laila Willbur, Cherry Street Public House Barista Magazine 4345 NE 72nd Ave. Portland, OR 97218 phone: 800.296.9108 fax: 971.223.3659 email: info@baristamagazine.com www.baristamagazine.com Barista Magazine is published bimonthly by Ollen Media, LLC. Subscriptions are $30 in the United States, $45 USD in Canada, and $60 USD for the rest of the world. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. Postmaster please send address corrections to: Barista Magazine, 4345 NE 72nd Ave., Portland, OR 97218. ISSN: 1944-3544 Copyright 2018 Barista Magazine. All rights reserved. BARIST A M A G A Z I N E E D I T O R L E T T E R when sexual harassment hits home I WAS GOING TO WRITE this letter about cold brew. It's February when you're reading this, and you're likely—or you probably should be—thinking about your summer menu. No matter if you're a Toddy person, the fl ash-brew type, or a concentrate devotee (OMG have you seen how many quality concentrates there are on the market lately? DaVinci Gourmet just debuted one. Peerless Coffee in Oakland, Calif. has one. They're everywhere!), cold-brew coffee is an essential these days, not a trend. OK, that's a condensed version of what I was going to write in this letter. But folks, I need to talk to you about something else right now. We need to talk about sexual harassment. We planned this issue's story about the legalities of sex- ual harassment, and the importance of having a policy in place no matter how tiny your business is months ago (and we're thrilled with the fi nal result, which was penned by Portland, Ore.- based coffee pro Lauren Lathrop and appears on page 80). We were reeling from the news coming out of Hollywood, the political sphere, and the restaurant world of rampant sexual harassment and assault charges. We were revolted and dis- turbed, and it became clear almost immediately that we would likely soon see some of the same claims raised within—and about members of— our coffee community. I'm writing this on January 6, the day after The San Francisco Chronicle broke the news that former employees of that city's Four Barrel Coffee fi led a lawsuit alleging that company founder and co-owner Jeremy Tooker sexually assaulted and harassed multiple female employ- ees, and along with the two co-owners, created a toxic work environment. Social media has been blowing up about if for the past 24 hours, as you would expect, and we've been glued to the news and talking about it ever since. Let's go back a few clicks: Before working in coffee, my only real professional experience was as a staff writer for two major daily newspapers. These companies adhered to strict codes of con- duct. They had legal departments. They didn't allow booze at company parties. As a 20-some- thing cub reporter, I thought that was all kind of uptight. So when I later became an editor at a coffee publication and got to know people in this fascinating, inspiring industry, one of the aspects about it I loved best was how offbeat and causal everyone was. I loved the raw energy and fearlessness, the entrepre- neurial risk-taking nature of specialty coffee in the 2000s. With that creativity and unbridled passion, however, comes a kind of lawlessness that is massively volatile. We talk about coffee being a family, but unless families of any kind have rules and repercussions, they run a frightening risk of being dysfunctional—and that's the best-case scenario. Back in December, when we were working on this issue's sexual-harassment policy article, we asked our Instagram followers whether they had such policies in place, and I was sad to see dismissive comments like just don't do it, or we would never hire someone like that. Sexual harassment is such a complex topic, and there are so many people who don't understand it. We have to educate ourselves in order to protect ourselves, as well as safeguard those around us. For café owners, that includes people to whom you have a legal obligation: your staff. Barista Mag exists to inform and inspire coffee professionals with how-to stories, business tutorials, and advice from the experts, along with coverage of our coffee culture, (which is for the most part vibrant and beautiful—let's hold fast to that). With the sexual-harassment story in this issue, as well as its companion piece by RJ Joseph on why it's critical that cafés also have policies in place regarding workplace romances, we seek to inform you and to equip you with tools and resources in order that you can be the most responsible professional you can be. These issues concerning Jeremy Tooker and Four Barrel Coffee are ongoing, and we will like- ly see more stories of sexual harassment and/or abuse come out of our industry before too long. It's distressing and tragic for so many reasons. Feeling unsafe in one's workspace is terrifying emotionally as well as fi nancially. I've been think- ing a lot about the people at Four Barrel today who can't stand the idea of going in to work but have to because they've got rent and bills to pay. I'm glad our industry is rising up and offer- ing support in the form of words, actions, and dollars: Look for more education and resources (such as the not-for-profi t #Coffeetoo support and action group; panel discussions at The Cof- feewoman Houston event in March; and more) to come out of our proactive coffee community. It's OK to be sad and angry—I know I am. But climb out of it if you can to let those feelings fuel the fi ght toward making our industry not only safe, but compassionate and harmonious. 14 barista magazine