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Tea and No Sympathy

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, the ubiquitous West Coast coffeehouse chain, doesn't care too much for gay websites, apparently. According to a post on UniteTheFight.org, the caffeine purveyor's Wi-Fi service blocks LGBT websites -- at least at one Los Angeles location -- including Pam's House Blend, a blog heavy on news but nil on nudity or any actual sexual content.


The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, the ubiquitous West Coast coffeehouse chain, doesn't care too much for gay websites, apparently. According to a post on UniteTheFight.org , the caffeine purveyor's Wi-Fi service blocks LGBT websites -- at least at one Los Angeles location -- including Pam's House Blend, a blog heavy on news but nil on nudity or any actual sexual content.

Phillip Minton of Unite the Fight -- a group trying to overturn California's Proposition 8 -- had booted up his laptop on Thursday at a Coffee Bean location in the Beverly Center area of Los Angeles and was informed he couldn't access sites like Pam's House Blend and Towleroad due to "sexuality." According to commenters at Unite the Fight's website, ex-gay sites for groups like Exodus and Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays are accessible on Coffee Bean's Wi-Fi service.

In his post, Minton wrote, "Naturally, I wrote a rather angry e-mail [to Coffee Bean's Wi-Fi provider] telling them they need to do a better job determining what is porn or 'adult' from what is a news or editorial blog. If I typed in "heterosexual," would the sites pulled up be blocked? I doubt it."

The Wi-Fi provider, OpenDNS, responded to Minton with the following e-mail: "We only provide network admins with the tools to block content on their networks, we as a company do not block anyone for any reason. If this user (i.e.business) chooses to block a particular type of content on their network, we cannot interfere. You however, as a consumer, have every right to boycott their business for the way they choose to block content on their networks."

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf opened its first store in Los Angeles in 1963 and now operates hundreds of locations in California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and Mexico. A favorite of the celebrity set, Coffee Bean products are often seen in the hands of stars in tabloid photos. Coffee Bean representatives did not return calls for comment.

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Reader Comments
  • Name: DandyMonkey
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 6:33:00 PM
    Hometown: Atlanta

    Comment:

    To Boycott We Must Remember: #1 All issues are black and white- This, like so many things in life, is absolute! ...Sure, Coffee Bean does not spend time and capitol managing their WiFi Provider. They don't police the Sarah Palin republicans in the OC or Ventura County that are flagging the sites. Coffee Bean is a business that ultimately wants ALL consumers to spend $$ at their cafes. THAT IS BESIDE THE POINT: Something was blocked and we should cry out!!! stop complicating this with your facts! #2 Outrage feels good- I have an empty lonely life. I do not have the social skills to interact positively in my community. If there is a hate bandwagon comin' through town, get me on it! #3 We Are Owed Everything- yeah, so Coffee Bean is one of the largest cafe chains that offer free WiFi. They don't gouge their customers on it like Starbucks or Seattles Best. But the automated WiFi setting blocked a site and we MUST declare war on this liberal, generous coffee establishment! Why? see #2.

  • Name: Camille
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 6:17:00 PM
    Hometown: Long Beach

    Comment:

    I worked for CBTL 6 years and NEVER felt or witnessed discrimination! I think this article jumped the gun and made a poor choice in judgement to accuse the company in being anti-gay. CBTL offers domestic partner benefits equal to the same as the rest of the employees. They are in some of the largest gay communities & cities such as Long Beach, San Francisco, San Diego & West Hollywood. I have gone on many websites in many of their locations and never experienced a problem, only to have a relaxing day and enjoy their product. Instead of calling for a boycott due to a rash accusation before doing your research & getting your facts straight, I think this calls for an apology! I give kudos to Tim Casey for handling this situation with professionalism and respect.

  • Name: Paul
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 12:01:00 PM
    Hometown: San Francisco

    Comment:

    It is clear that we need to shut this business down

  • Name: Edward
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 11:58:00 AM
    Hometown: Boston

    Comment:

    Do not give your business to places that are anti-gay. I refuse to allow censorship on the internet so when a library recently tried to block gay sex sites on their computers (I paid taxes for them) I howled till they removed the filter. Everything we read doesn't have to be geared to infants or infantile religionists. I want to see pictures of cock. Too damn bad if you don't like it. Don't be looking at what I am doing on the net if it bothers you.

  • Name: bob
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 8:46:00 AM
    Hometown: bloomington

    Comment:

    Scratch my business Coffee Bean, I won't be there till you open it up to legitimate Gay sights like "The Advocate". This sounds like a rerun of another restaurant chain, only an electronic version...at least they have not fired Gay employees (that we know of). The "other restaurant chain" eventually changed their policies...after getting pressured. Sounds like I am going to be a Starbucks' customer! Oddly enough, I just purchased a place in California! HA!

  • Name: CHeR
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 4:17:00 AM
    Hometown: WHITTIER

    Comment:

    sorry that THIS guy couldnt get on to his web site. sux 4him. I work for the cbtl and i am gay so is my AGM and my DM. i also know of plenty of gay employees that work for us here at the cbtl. so GET IT TOGETHER FUCKER. we do have a strong FILTER on our wifi. so pay your bill n get online at home if u cant get on at a cafe dang!

  • Name: Me
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 1:37:00 AM
    Hometown: LaLa

    Comment:

    OpenDNS is in the wrong here, not CBTL OpenDNS's labeled the site "sexuality", and their definition of "sexuality" - from their own site - is: "Sexuality Sites that provide information, images or implications of bondage, sadism, masochism, fetish, beating, body piercing or self-mutilation." So CBTL filters the "sexuality" category based on that definition - makes perfect sense. OpenDNS considers pamshouseblend a part of the "sexuality" category, which obviously filters it from CBTL wifi users. Somehow CBTL is to blame for that? Maybe they're to blame for using a shitty filtering service, but OpenDNS is the company that categorized it as sexuality. THAT is evident. Boo on The Advocate and Unite the Fight for not doing their research, man. If I were CBTL I'd be PISSED! Case closed.

  • Name: BENJAMIN MCDONALD
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 1:22:00 AM
    Hometown: TUCSON, AZ

    Comment:

    Look at their board. All males. This doesn't reflect diversity. Plus the CEO, Sunny Sassoon donated $1,000 to Bush in 2004 $5,000 to McCain/Palin Victory Fund

  • Name: sarah2
    Date posted: 6/12/2009 12:42:00 AM
    Hometown: seattle

    Comment:

    Get over it... it's clear from the statement by the lesbian who used to work there, that the place is not antigay. If you want to boycott something, there are plenty of openly anti-gay businesses out there to boycott. Geeeeze louise!!!!

  • Name: ED
    Date posted: 6/11/2009 11:09:00 PM
    Hometown: LONG BEACH

    Comment:

    FOR ALL YOU WHO CALL FOR A BOYCOTT,PLEASE GO TO YOUR NEAREST CBTL AND POWER UP YOUR OWN COMPUTER AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS. IF YOU READ STUFF LIKE THIS ARTICLE AND NOT DO YOUR OWN INVESTIGATION THEN YOU ARE NO BETTER THAN ANY SHEEP FOLLOWING YOUR LEADER OFF A CLIFF. MY FRIENDS WHO WORK THERE ARE TREATED WELL AND DO NOT IN ANY WAY HAVE ISSUES SUCH AS DESCRIBED IN THIS ARTICLE. SO BEFORE YOU START YOUR MARCH, DO THE FOOT WORK FIRST!

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