Reverend Billy is leaning against the counter of a Starbucks in Northridge, California. Dressed in a white suit and clerical collar, his gelled, dyed-blond hair swept skyward in a John Travolta pompadour, he could easily pass for a real man of the cloth–until he opens his mouth.
A congregation of a dozen supporters yells “Hallelujah!” as an ex-marine, deciding to act as store security, clutches at the reverend’s jacket.
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“Let’s go, children! Starbucks is over. Amen and change-e-lujah!”
It seems doubtful that many latte sippers have been converted by the Church of Stop Shopping’s “retail interventions.” Bewilderment is a common response, and some customers grow defensive. But Talen claims that others add their own hallelujahs to the choir, and that he has even seen employees clapping. Starbucks headquarters has taken notice: the title of Talen’s book is lifted from a memo the company circulated to employees unsure of how to respond to the pageants. (Needless to say, it did not recommend applauding.) At a Disney Store in Times Square–a favorite target of the church–a manager once tried to warn off troupe members by saying, apparently without irony, “If you’re not shopping I can have you arrested.”
When: Wed 12/7, 7:30 PM
Art accompanying story in printed newspaper (not available in this archive): photo/Charles Eshelman.
