Black Friday — the day when shoppers lose all sanity to get the best bang for their buck.
Although I think the behavior displayed on Black Friday is ludicrous in itself, the thing I find extremely frustrating is that retailers are opening their doors the day before, on the holiday of Thanksgiving. According to CBS News, retailers opened as early as 5 p.m. this Thanksgiving.
This is absolutely ridiculous. When I was younger, I thought people were crazy to go shopping before the sun rose on Black Friday — it was almost humorous to me. Now that this shopping holiday is starting to overlap a holiday based on the principles of spending time with close friends and family, retailers are beginning to go too far.
To eat that extra slice of market share, more and more retailers are leaving the Thanksgiving table early to open their doors to remain competitive with their rivals. These stores need to adjust their priorities.
As a result of these stores opening on Thanksgiving, many people will now have the urge to leave their Aunt Gail’s a little early to get in line at their favorite store. At my Thanksgiving dinner, two of my cousins left early just so they could go Black Friday shopping.
Now with the availability of shopping on Thanksgiving evening, family time has a sense of urgency. Thanksgiving is especially important to me now that I’m away at college where I don’t get to see my extended family very often.
Leaving Thanksgiving dinner early appears selfish to me. I didn’t realize getting a shirt half off was more valuable than spending quality time with your family.
Not only does pre–Black Friday shopping encourage more people to go shopping on Thanksgiving, but it takes workers away from their families whether they like it or not.
Because retailers obviously need a working staff, many people had to leave their Thanksgiving festivities prematurely.
But the problem is, people aren’t taking action to stop this nonsense. Because more than enough people are participating in Black Thursday, retailers don’t see any logical business reason to not open their doors a day early.
Although it may make business sense, it fails in any moral sense. This activity encourages people to put a greater importance on material objects.
Next Thanksgiving, I hope more people choose to avoid shopping before Black Friday. Stick around for that crazy story from your Uncle Jim or that slobbery kiss from your grandma because that could be taken away from you in a second. Spend your next Thanksgiving with your family, not shopping.
Anthony Herta is an intern at The State News. Reach him at aherta@statenews.com
