This week, Americans across the nation will sit down with their families to celebrate all that they're thankful for. They will gather around the table, listing off all of their blessings; the food in front of them, the roof over their heads, the family surrounding them, and all the material possessions they are lucky enough to own. If your family is anything like mine, your mom will try to make it as much of a touching Hallmark scene as possible.
And, if you're anything like the majority of Americans, you will completely forget about everything you said at that table just twelve short hours later.
Black Friday is my least favorite day of the year. Even when I was younger, I thought it was a disgusting display of human greed. I would hear stories of fights breaking out over the last of an out-of-stock item, of people being trampled at the doors, of families camping out with their children in the freezing cold to make it in for the early-bird specials. I was bothered by the idea of Black Friday shopping well before I joined the work force.
Once I did start working, however, I developed a brand new hatred for the so-called "holiday." My first job was as a sales associate and cashier at my local HomeGoods. As far as first jobs go, I was pretty lucky. My coworkers were, for the most part, pretty great. I loved working there up until I got a second job, when the stress and demands of both jobs and school got to be too much. While working there, I was lucky enough to experience three Black Fridays in a store that didn't have sales. We opened at the normal time, and closed at the normal time, and for the most part, we missed the brunt of the Black Friday chaos. We didn't miss all of it though.
I believe this season brings out the absolute worst in people, and it all starts with Black Friday. You have massive crowds of people lined up, ready to pick a fight with anyone over a good deal. It's utter chaos, and thrown into that chaos are retail employees. They are the people being called away from their loved ones on Thanksgiving to prepare a store for the massive hoards of people coming to rip the place to shreds. They are the people getting screamed at when an item is out of stock. They are the people standing on their feet for 8+ hours to accommodate you, to make sure you have an enjoyable shopping trip. They are the people on the other end of an ever-ringing phone, trying their best to answer your questions. They are people, people who would much rather spend the day at home with their families than get paid minimum wage to get screamed at by impatient, greedy customers.
Before you grab your coats and buy your hot chocolate to wait in line for an early-bird sale, think about these people. Think about the time you got to spend with your family on Thanksgiving, and think of those people who weren't able to because they had to work. Put yourself in their shoes, and go home. Sit with your loved ones, and take advantage of the online deals many stores offer all weekend long. Leave Thursday for Thanksgiving, and end the Black Friday craze.
