Having the Chance to Experience Thanksgiving

Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving...

Psalm 147:7

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday.  In my childhood, it was a time when family got together, glorious food was prepared (and loads of it!), and we didn't have to go to school for two whole days!  As I grew older and understood the reason for Thanksgiving, I loved it even more.  Now that my children are grown and living near and far, Thanksgiving holds a very important place in my calendar, because my girls always come home for that holiday.

When my kids were teenagers, their first jobs were in retail.  All three of them worked for Express, and two of the three worked for Victoria's Secret.  When you work retail, there are not many days that are considered holidays.  The main one, of course, is Christmas, but the next most important is Thanksgiving - or at least it was.

The day after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday - supposedly the biggest shopping day of the year.  The term "black Friday" started in Philadelphia in the 1960's - a term to describe the traffic and congestion on that day.  By the 1970's, it had begun to move outward from Philly.  For many years, it was common for stores to open at 6:00am on Black Friday.   During the 2000's, the time began to creep back to 5:00am and then 4:00am.  Last year, the opening hour was moved back to midnight.  This year, Walmart and several other stores announced that they were opening at 8:00pm on Thursday, with Target and others following at 9:00pm.  This has prompted Walmart workers to threaten a walkout, and Target workers to start a petition drive.

If Thanksgiving Day is one of the only days that you have to spend with your loved ones, having a leisurely dinner and family time, there is good reason why you do not want to be called in to work.  Do I as a consumer need to start shopping for bargains on Thursday evening at 8:00pm  No, I certainly don't.  If retailers keep backing up the start of their special sales, there will no longer be a "Black Friday" - and I doubt that they will sell more if all their special deals are on Thanksgiving Thursday.

If you would like to support the Target workers who are appealing to the CEO of their corporation, go to www.change.org and lend your "signature" to their petition.   They will appreciate your support.  If you do not believe that retailers should be encroaching on their employees' rare family holiday, boycott the Thanksgiving Day shopping and wait until it is actually Friday.  If consumers refuse to go on Thanksgiving evening, retailers might get the message..