Black Friday, while ridiculous and chaotic, is an accepted tradition. Savvy shoppers have the opportunity to get first dibs on great deals, which is especially handy to gear up for Christmas. Black Friday is a day that people can choose to participate in, or graciously bow out of. But nowadays, the bargains start on Thursday, and opting out of the craziness is more and more difficult to do.
“I remember when stores didn’t open until 5 or 6 a.m. on Black Friday. This gave shoppers the opportunity to spend the holiday with their families, and get some sleep before getting up early to hit the stores,” said one Leader staff member. “Since then, stores have been opening earlier each year to try to beat each other out …”
Last year, she explained, her aunt and cousins traveled from Montana to Michigan to partake in the family Thanksgiving feast for the first time in about a decade. But, instead of spending the whole day with the family, getting good deals took precedence.
“The rest of our family was really upset that we couldn’t spend the whole holiday with them,” she explained. “… I want to be thankful for my whole family together, and not ‘Black Thursday’ deals.”
“Black Thursday” is the new tradition and it’s something The Leader does not support. Instead, we support having a full 24-hour Thanksgiving celebration, complete with a multi-hour, tryptophan-induced nap. Especially as college students, we understand that getting the whole family in one place at one time is a rare occurrence. So why ruin it with a stressful journey to the outlet malls?
“… By having these stores open [during Thanksgiving], [it] turns a meaningful celebration into a commercial celebration. I know America is perverse, but c’mon,” said a second Leader staff member. “Close the stores.”
And what about those brave sales associates and other retail workers that are forced to clock into their places of employment on turkey day? If all stores would just wait until midnight, and open their doors on actual Friday, that Target cashier might be able to enjoy a full meal with his family. Instead, he’s getting dressed in his red shirt before it’s even dinner time.
“This one day is important because American capitalists get to break their greedy, borderline-psychopathic natures to show people that respect and love aren’t ideals that are entirely abandoned in the American society,” said a third Leader staff member. “When we refuse to let people have this opportunity by making them work on the holiday, we refuse to let them have the only opportunity by which they can truly show thanks for their opportunity to be alive.
“Not only that,” he continued, “we encourage them to, in fact, support that nasty aspects of capitalism as — and I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this — Thanksgiving shoppers are some of the most terrifying capitalists in the world.”
But hey, there’s nothing wrong with saving a little bit of money. However, The Leader staff supports the idea of having the best of both worlds: a full day with the family and hours of shopping.
“As stores continue to open earlier and earlier, what many people don’t realize is that you can sleep in and still get some great deals,” said another Leader staff member. “I ventured to my local mall at 3 p.m. on Black Friday for a haircut and with no intentions of shopping — assuming I had missed all the good deals. However, the shopaholic in me took over, and I quickly found myself in Loft, where every item in the store was 50 percent off. I scored some great deals and got a good night’s sleep.”
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