Starbucks under fire over holiday cups that 'feature same-sex couples' hands'

The company featured two women holding hands in a Christmas advertisement as well

Starbucks' new holiday cups are coming under fire - for possibly depicting the hands of a lesbian couple.

The holiday cup line was launched with a commercial showing a range of ages, races and sexualities. It ends with two women embracing over a cup of piping hot coffee.

While it was celebrated by many, the simple display of inclusiveness has - sadly and predictably - led to outrage from some of the more closed-minded parts of the web.

BuzzFeed wrote that “while people who follow both Starbucks holiday cup news and LGBT issues celebrated the video, the ordinary Starbucks customer probably didn't realize the cup might have a gay agenda.”

The campaign's opening line read: “The holidays mean something different for everyone.”

But one Twitter user quoted a Bible verse as a criticism of the campaign, writing: “the new Starbucks cup has lesbian couple on it. Rom 1:26 ‘because of this, God gave them over to shameful lust'…”

And others used a clip for the ad or picture of the new cup with the hashtag #BoycottStarbucks and some made it a political statement.

Many of those calling for the boycott appear to also be against pod-based coffee maker manufacturer Keurig, which recently pulled its advertising from Fox News host Sean Hannity's programme after the right-leaning anchor interviewed Roy Moore, the Republican Alabama Senate candidate accused of child sex abuse.

The company has faced backlash the past two years for its holiday line from some of these same coffee drinkers who thought the previous plain red design was not celebrating the holidays enough.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Seattle-based company's holiday cups and the first time featuring white space for customers to colour in themselves.

Starbucks has not confirmed or denied anything but said in a statement it aims “to bring our customers an experience that inspires the spirit of the season, and we will continue to embrace and welcome customers from all backgrounds and religions in our stores around the world.”

In the meantime, the holiday drinks list includes flavours like chestnut praline, caramel brulee, peppermint mocha, eggnog, and gingerbread.