California Starbucks incident gains attention after Philadelphia arrests

For Brandon Ward, the video showing the arrest of two black men at a Philadelphia Starbucks was all too familiar.

He's the man involved in a similar situation that unfolded at a Southern California Starbucks in January but is now gaining attention on social media following last week's viral incident that has resulted in national boycotts and public apologies from the Seattle-based coffee chain.

 >>READ MORE: In Starbucks incident, Philly cops and employees acted 'in accordance with the law,' says police watchdog group

Shaun King, activist and co-founder of Real Justice, shared the clip this week with the message: "Here we go again. Meet Brandon Ward. He was @Starbucks — about to make a purchase — and needed to use the restroom. They denied him the code. He then finds a white man, Weston, who came out of the restroom. He had not made a purchase but they gave HIM the code. RACISM."

>>READ MORE: Starbucks to close all U.S. stores May 29 for racial-bias training after arrests in Philadelphia

The video now has more than 1.7 million views.

Ward can be seen confronting a Starbucks employee who identifies herself as the store manager. Security then escorted him out of the store in Torrance, near Los Angeles. Police were called to the scene, according to KTLA5.

"Is it my skin color?" Ward, who also posted the video to his Facebook on Saturday, can be heard saying.

Ward, 26, was in the store waiting for a friend to pick him up when the incident unfolded, according to ABC7. He told the station that he decided to repost the video after two black men were arrested in a Philadelphia store when they hadn't yet purchased anything and refused to leave. The event has sparked days of protests outside the store at 18th and Spruce Streets.

 >>READ MORE: For black cafe patrons, Starbucks arrests raise concerns and interest in black businesses

"If you have a policy, you should abide by those guidelines for everyone," Ward told ABC7. "You can't sit here and segregate things."

Starbucks announced Tuesday afternoon that the chain would close all U.S. stores on the afternoon of May 29 for racial-bias training.

"Please know that we take this video and the commentary around it very seriously, and are working closely with the team to learn from our mistakes," a Starbucks spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday. "As you may have read in the letter from our CEO, we are fully investigating our store practices and guidelines across the company. In addition to our own review we will work with outside experts and community leaders understand and adopt best practices, including unconscious bias training."