A couple of years ago, I posted the following status to Facebook:
“Anyone going “Black Friday” shopping on Thanksgiving Thursday will be judged harshly. You’re part of the problem. Your family & the family of those employees is more important than a $10 DVD player.”
That status led to a slew of comments which I recapped here: Black Friday Shopping On Thanksgiving… Please Don’t.
As we’re getting toward that time of year again I feel compelled to post this image / pledge which I ran across the other day:
Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday of the year. And while fried, smoked and roasted turkey is very high on my list, that’s not the reason why… it’s because of the time I get to spend with my family. As this image says… everyone deserves a holiday.
No Shop Update 11.23.2015
I have a friend whos’ worked retail for year. She posted the following message the other day and I wanted to pass it along:
I want to start this post by saying I truly appreciate that I have a job and especially one that allows me to support my family financially.
However, financial support doesn’t replace the time lost during the holidays. I have spent the last 10+ years missing Thanksgiving and barely having a Christmas. I have zero issues with Black Friday and although I have never shopped on one, I enjoy the craziness and fun that day represents. I do not however support working on Thanksgiving Day. When I was a kid, nothing was open on that day and it was truly about family, as it should be.
I find the increasing need to get to stores as soon as possible to buy things really disturbing. In the beginning I blammed the stores for being open, but the truth is, the more people who shop on that day, the worse it’s going to get. Retailers are only doing what the consumers have shown will work.
We now only get 2 actual Holidays a year where we are closed. Easter and Christmas. And I fear those are in danger too. I urge you to think about what a holiday should mean and to realize that spending quality time with your family on that day is worth so much more than the best doorbuster deal.
I, for one, will miss my family terribly. It hurts like you wouldn’t believe to be at work while your husband and kids fend for themselves on a holiday or to not get to see the rest of your family that lives three hours away.
Please be respectful to your cashiers, managers, and sales people this holiday season.
