A Texas coffee chain is finding itself at the center of a growing political firestorm after an internal disagreement over whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers should qualify for a first responder discount spilled into public view, sparking employee resignations and calls for a conservative boycott.
White Rhino Coffee, a Dallas-based chain founded by Chris Parvin, has built its brand around the idea of creating welcoming community spaces. With more than a dozen locations across North Texas, the company promotes the slogan, “A cup of coffee won’t change the world, but how we share it might.”
Now, that message is being tested after a dispute involving one of its former managers went viral.
Margot Stacy, who had worked for White Rhino Coffee since June 2025 and managed the company’s downtown Dallas location, resigned in January after objecting to the company’s policy of extending its first responder discount to ICE officers.
According to reports, the controversy first surfaced during a mandatory district-wide employee meeting held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Employees were informed that their staff discount would be reduced from 50 percent to 30 percent—a decision many disliked—but that wasn’t what ultimately caused the biggest internal conflict.
Instead, debate erupted over whether ICE personnel should continue receiving the company’s first responder discount.
Stacy said she had encountered ICE officers at her location on several occasions, including one who stopped by on the day of the shooting at the Dallas ICE facility. She argued that the officers’ presence made her uncomfortable because many of her employees and customers came from diverse backgrounds.
According to the Dallas Observer, Stacy said many members of her staff were Hispanic, Black, LGBTQ, or transgender, while many customers were international travelers.
“So we have a very diverse but also vulnerable labor force,” she said, adding that she was constantly thinking about employee safety.
Seeking clarification, Stacy reportedly raised the issue in a company managers’ group chat, asking whether stores could refuse service to ICE agents or at least deny them the first responder discount.
Before receiving an official response, she had already decided not to honor the discount for ICE personnel at her own location.
“We had autonomy to do things like that, and to me it was a no-brainer,” Stacy reportedly said. “They’re not first responders.”
Company leadership disagreed.
Management instructed managers that ICE officers were to be treated like any other customer and that businesses should avoid taking political positions.
“I understand our stance is to stay apolitical,” management reportedly responded. “We should not involve ourselves in any of that as a business. They should be treated like any other customers.”
That response did little to calm tensions.
The disagreement eventually culminated in Stacy’s resignation and a brief employee walkout later that week, but the controversy quickly expanded beyond the company’s walls once details became public.
Conservative commentators blasted criticism of ICE officers, arguing that federal immigration agents routinely place themselves in dangerous situations while enforcing immigration law and protecting communities.
Political commentator Chris Krok announced he would boycott the chain, writing on social media, “I will NOT support White Rhino Coffee or any of their locations. ICE agents ARE first responders, as Border Patrol are. Just ask the people of Uvalde. It was BORTAC who stopped the shooter. Shame on White Rhino Coffee.”
Others echoed that sentiment, accusing activists of unfairly targeting federal law enforcement officers simply because they enforce immigration laws.
One widely shared post urged North Texans to take their business elsewhere, arguing that customers want coffee shops focused on serving quality drinks rather than engaging in political activism.
Ironically, White Rhino Coffee’s leadership appeared to be attempting to avoid politics altogether by directing employees to treat all customers equally regardless of profession or political controversy. Yet the incident illustrates how difficult neutrality has become in today’s polarized environment.
Whether the backlash ultimately affects White Rhino Coffee’s business remains to be seen, but the controversy serves as another example of how America’s culture wars increasingly extend into everyday businesses—and how even a simple cup of coffee can become a flashpoint in the nation’s ongoing political divide.
