Black Friday abstinence

There is an increasing trend of people vowing to abstain from shopping on Black Friday. Retailers have been attempting to up their game by increasing shopping hours, which have spilled into Thanksgiving. But should we abstain from shopping on Black Friday. Is it right to get on our anti-consumerism soap box?

I have never been a Black Friday shopper. I just see no need to claw and fight for item that I did not even think I wanted. Many adults have also never shopped on Black Friday. The statistics tell us that more people aren't heading out in the wee hours after their holiday dinner, however there is growing competition for their dollars. Plus, the deals are said to be not great this year. The Black Friday bubble is about to burst. People have had too much. 

Those who are against Black Friday shopping often cite the injustice that the workers face. They are required to work instead of spending time with their families. I roll my eyes at this. I feel that if we want to pitty workers and take a stand, we should do it across the board. Retail workers are certainly not the only people who have to work instead of spending time with their families. Still, there is no wide movement to convince people to not go out to dinner or to not watch a newscast on the holiday. That is the injustice, the uneven application of American sympathy.

I come from a place of experience on this point. I have had to work holidays because the news always goes on. As a journalist I was required to work a summer holiday (Memorial Day, Independence Day, or Labor Day) and a winter holiday (Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's Day). Sure, we got to pick which day we wanted to work, but in the end our manager would give us the holiday he wanted us to work. Mine was Christmas and as such, it is not my favorite holiday or even one that I celebrate. The double whammy here is that I had Thanksgiving off but could not spend it with my family. Thanks for giving me the Thursday off, but requiring me to work on Black Friday to report on all of the crazy shoppers, traffic jams, and car crashes. That brief time off was a teaser and resulted in me not being able to properly celebrate yet another holiday. To make matters even worse (as if I need to make this worse), I worked the over night schedule, so I had to go in to work at 11pm on Thanksgiving. I do not see much difference in this than in the case of the retail worker required to report to work at the same time.

This is why I suggest that if we want to take a stand for something we should take a stand for the whole problem. We shouldn't be able to pick and choose who deserves to spend the holiday with their family, especially when that decision is based on your habits. By doing that, people are making a value judgment on the lives of others. Retail workers deserve to eat a large dinner with their family and be thankful, but those who work in news or public safety, or in the restaurant business are not worth it. The decision to tell others to not shop on Black Friday is easy for those who do not want to shop. That's a cheap way to take a stand for something.