The world-renowned coffee franchise uploaded a commercial five days ago that brought tears to the eyes of its viewers.
The names given to every person have their own story. Parents usually come up with different ways to name their children—in Filipino culture, parents usually blend their names to form a new one, and some take the biblical approach, while others create a completely whimsical name. It is said that names given to children follow and stick with them forever. At least, that was the case before.
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A recently-released commercial from Starbucks India told a story of how names define people. The advertisement started with two Indian parents waiting for their child—the father was visibly disgruntled, while the mother was trying to calm her husband down. In the hand of the father was a phone showing the caller ID of his son, Arpit.
A few moments later, a beautiful woman entered the coffee shop and hugged the two adults. “Thank you, papa, for meeting me. I know it’s been years, but you still mean the world to me,” she said. The scene revealed that the woman in front of them was their son, now daughter, Arpita.
The daughter’s name was revealed after her father ordered coffee under her new name, which the barista announced. The commercial ended with the father saying, “For me, you are still my kid only one letter was added to your name.”
In the name of acceptance
The commercial is a big step in trans visibility and representation. The very timely piece reflects the LGBTQ+ climate in India. It was just last month when the country’s Supreme Court of India began hearings about legalizing same-sex marriages in India. These hearings are big step for the advancement of LGBTQ+ rights, but the perception most people have against the community hasn’t changed.
The commercial also discussed one of the main problems that trans people are facing today—deadnaming.
According to Cleveland Clinic, “A transgender person may decide to no longer use their birth or legal name. Instead, they’ll choose a name that better aligns with their identity.” The source states that deadnaming happens “when someone uses their [the transgender person’s] old name after being asked not to.” For trans people, the previous version of themselves are already dead since they are a new person; thus, using their preferred name is a way of showing respect towards their chosen identity.
Acceptance for the LGBTQ+ community usually begins with simple but meaningful gestures—like respecting name changes. Although the rainbow-paved road towards acceptance and equality is still far from completion, baby steps like this can make a world of a difference.
Banner photo by Esranur Kalay via Pexels.
