Starbucks’ simple, red cups have caused an uproar among coffee consumers this holiday season because they are not decorated with Christmas patterns, like the past seasonal coffee cups.

Everyone is talking about the issue, including Presidential candidate Donald Trump who suggested “boycotting Starbucks” and claims that “if [he] becomes President, we will be saying ‘Merry Christmas’ again.”

The red cups are getting an enormous amount of attention on social media.  Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook are exploding with comments and posts which has led to the creation of a hashtag, #ItsJustACup, to mock the national controversy.

One of Hamline University’s Starbucks baristas, sophomore, Parker Flanders, says “It is just a cup.”

Starbucks’ past holiday cups have mostly featured snowflakes and snowmen, which are not directly in support of Christmas.

“It’s never been a super Christmas-y cup anyways,” said Flanders.

With Christmas-themed menus, merchandise, pastries, and lattes, such as the Gingerbread Latte, Starbucks still shows it’s jolly for the most wonderful time of the year.

Flanders says that “People are mad that it’s a non-holiday themed cup because it’s not Christmassy enough, although it’s red and green which makes no sense to me…  If you look at the cup, it’s a green logo and then a red cup… It’s not anti-Christmas or anything.”

The free publicity Starbucks is receiving is through the roof, or should we say, chimney.

“I feel like it’s just an attention thing, or it’s a conspiracy from Starbucks’ marketing,” said Flanders.

Every year the cup design changes a little bit for the holidays.

“We change things every year for every season,” Flanders said.

Regardless of it being a disposable cup that is thrown away once it is empty, that doesn’t stop Starbucks admirer from getting upset over this issue.

Flanders said “Everyone is making a huge deal out of it.”

Flanders believes that such a massive reaction to such a small change is puzzling.

“I don’t know if it’s like a satirical thing or if everyone is in on this joke or something… It does seem very silly,” said Flanders.

Kristen Dellwo, sophomore, expressed her thoughts on the controversy.

Dellwo said she believes “Starbucks got rid of the designs on the cups to be more accommodating to all religious holidays… To not make people from other religions feel uncomfortable about it.”

The first place Dellwo heard about the controversial matter was on social media.

“I understand why they’re doing it, but I think they can still do winter designs,” plus “the designs are more fun,” said Dellwo.