Found through Twitter:

Am I a total racist for thinking this is a way to keep poor & minority customers out of their hip San Francisco coffee shop? https://t.co/u9ZVdlJQ9O

— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) March 1, 2019

Blue Bottle will ban cash at twelve locations across the USA as part of a month-long experiment that aims to speed up purchases. Two participating stores are in San Francisco.

Is banning cash a ploy to exclude people unable to obtain credit cards or other electronic payment methods?

“For a lot of low-income San Franciscans, credit cards or other phone-based mobile payments aren’t an option,” said San Francisco Supervisor Vallie Brown.

I’m inclined to think that banning cash is a ploy to discourage the poor and homeless from entering their stores.

There were many different takes on this tweet. I prefer to pay cash for purchases under twenty dollars, as paying cash and accepting change is a tangible way to gauge how I spend my money. If I get a five-dollar bill, I just sock it away.

Sources:

Chinn, P. (n.d.). [Dianne Francisco pays for her order with a credit card at Blue Bottle Coffee at Market and 10th streets in San Francisco, Calif. on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019. At left, is barista Greg Alfaro. The cafe inside the Twitter headquarters building is one of a handful of Blue Bottle stores that will go cashless for a trial period beginning March 11.Photo: Photos by Paul Chinn / The Chronicle]. Retrieved March 1, 2019, from https://s.hdnux.com/photos/01/00/66/73/17002238/5/gallery_xlarge.jpg

EducatëdHillbilly™. (2019, Mar). Am I a total racist for thinking this is a way to keep poor & minority customers out of their hip San Francisco coffee shop? [Twitter post]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/RobProvince/status/1101531306620530688.

Narayan, S. (2019, March 01). Blue Bottle buys into cashless trend. Retrieved March 1, 2019, from https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/Blue-Bottle-buys-into-cashless-trend-13653830.php