A Denver woman's coffee run recently ended in a dramatic call to the police after she changed her baby's diaper in the seating area at a local Starbucks.
Ruth Burgos first took her 1-year-old son Thiago to the restroom, but noticed there was no changing table. So she brought him back out and began changing him in the seating area–which is when things turned real ugly.
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According to Burgos and her husband, employees gave them a rag when they spotted them changing the diaper and asked them to wipe the area after they were done. Sounds reasonable right? Apparently not! Burgos' husband says their tone was "demeaning." So instead of simply carrying on, he decided to retaliate by throwing his cup of coffee on the floor and telling the staff to "clean that up." Seriously?! This is a grown adult?
Words were exchanged and eventually, the store called the police to report a "disturbance." Nobody was arrested and the company has since apologized to the family, but the parents are still fuming. "As a mother, you have to do what you have to do. Wherever you have to do it," Burgos said of her actions.
Um…wrong. Sorry, but am I the only one who thinks that is NOT an excuse to change your baby's dirty diapers in public eating areas? There are, of course, certain cases in which parents do need to do whatever it takes for the safety of their kids. But this was not a life-or-death situation. Why didn't this mom bring a changing mat for her child or run out to the car and do it there? I mean, other parents do it every day!
Should Starbucks have changing tables readily available at all of their locations? Absolutely. But they're not technically a "family restaurant" so if they don't have them, it's not their responsibility to come up with a way for parents to change their kids. And it's also definitely not their job to clean up dirty diapers–which is why I was appalled by this couple's behavior. Since they essentially disregarded common courtesy (not to mention, basic health regulations) and insisted on changing their son in the public area, I think it's totally fair for staff to request them to wipe it down after they're done. But when asked, this dad threw a tantrum as if he was the one who needed diaper changing.
Honestly, I don't think Starbucks had any reason to apologize … but the fact that they did so proves that at least ONE party in this case is considerate.
Image via USAToday
