Turning this day into another black Friday will result in a loss of the morals and virtues thanksgiving teaches. Adults and children will cease to remember the values this holiday brings, and in turn will only view the day as one where they will receive lavish gifts for waiting in line for hours and trampling people. Therefore, it is ironic to have a holiday that revolves solely on buying things, replace a holiday that is based on being thankful for what you already own. Accordingly, having retail stores open on Thanksgiving Day will diminish the true meaning of the
“We believe it is important for our team members to be able to spend this time with their loved ones,” said Travis Smith the CEO and president from Jo Ann Fabric and Craft Stores (New Haven). If all store owners thought like this then there would be no early Black Friday on Thanksgiving and workers could spend that time with their families. Instead of being with their families, they have to be answering to rude customers. Many americans have said that Black Friday shopping is one of the worst ideas stores have made and Thanksgiving is meant to be spent with your family. Although they are getting paid pretty good money to work on Thanksgiving, many have said they would much rather be with their families.
Reason 1 •Black friday is not for everyone and so then workers won’t be able to have thanksgiving dinner if the stores are open. Supporting details are listed below
Again why Black Friday should be on Friday. For example, on the U.S. news reported that retail employees have gone to the internet media and started a petition site, change.org, asking for early-opening retailers such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy, and Target to push back their sales. They argue that by opening earlier that retailers are stealing time away from their families. I use to work for a major retail store and we could not request to have that day off so I had to work on Thanksgiving Day. Not only did I not get to spend time with my husband and three kids, but family that came out of town to spend time with my family and I.
Notably, an executive producer from Vocabulary.com, Ben Zimmer, said “its association with shopping on the day after Thanksgiving began in Philadelphia in the 1960” (qdt. In Stout). This was predominantly due to hordes of consumers heading out to shop, triggering major traffic headaches, so it became a less than positive reference. As a matter of fact, numerous retailers wanted that day to have a more positive name attached to it like, Big Friday, but it never caught on. Thus, a new meaning was associated with Black Friday. According to Zimmer, that meaning was “The day retailer’s books went from the red ink to black” (qdt. In Stout).
There is two sides at shopping on Thanksgiving. One is saying it is wrong that stores are open on thanksgiving. People should spend time with their families not shop. People say that it is a family holiday not a shopping holiday. The other side says they like shopping on thanksgiving. They like it because there is deals that don’t happen a ton so they go out and go shopping. Overall, I think that there shouldn’t be shopping on thanksgiving for the reasons that vary. Those are reasons why people shop on thanksgiving and why not.
So why do people even try to get the people to come they should make it the law that they can’t open Black Friday on Thanksgiving so that we don’t lose Thanksgiving and replace it with Black Friday so let’s end the moving of Black Friday. We should move Black Friday back not forward and make sure that one of the most important holidays doesn’t come to an
According to the current data, depending on the source being used, the United States is often regarded as a capitalist economy, but it is actually a “mixed economy” that is fueled by consumerism. In a mixed economy there is private economic freedom mixed with the government having control of the markets. In the day to day shuffle, society feels the consumerism and its manipulating control of patrons. Consumerism is a form of government control which leads society to form an almost uncontrollable buying habit, especially during the holiday season. Holidays, once spent with family to praise and give thanks, are now being taken over by the government causing a split up families during the holiday with the allure of unbelievable sales. Author Matt Walsh wrote an insightful online Huffington Post article titled, If You Shop on Thanksgiving, You Are Part of the Problem. In his article he also shows strong concern for society’s outrageous spending habits during the holiday season, and how the government fuels the shopping frenzy. Matt Walsh additionally goes so far as to state, “Why give thanks for what you have when there’s so much you don’t have? That’s the new meaning of Thanksgiving: count your blessings, and then buy some more blessings and count them again” (Walsh). Society has the strength in numbers in order to help stop the government from its money driven ways which plays a role in families growing further apart. Society must be rehabilitated and forego this buying habit by returning to traditional family values, and not allowing the government to rape the family unit through clever economic brainwashing.
However, Black Friday is a way of boosting the economy and even morale. Americans take pride in their gadgets and devices, and that does not necessarily mean they are materialistic. Americans are proud at how advanced they have become, and are more than willing to spend their money on products that improve their lives. Just because they consume does not mean they do not place value on friendship, family, the environment, and other aspects of life. Their spending creates jobs, maintains the value of the American dollar, increases wages, and promotes technological
National Retail Federation. (2013, December 1). Americans gobbled up retailers' Thanksgiving weekend deal, according to NRF. Retrieved from National Retail Federation: http://www.nrf.com/modules.php?name=News&op=viewlive&sp_id=1705