For
the last couple of weeks, I've been bombarded with the opinions of
angry Americans who take any and all opportunities to express their
disgust over stores being open on Thanksgiving. They're talking about
it on TV, every online publication has some angle on the story, and my
Facebook friends have even gone so far as to post a badge on their
profile that proclaims that They Will Not Be Shopping on Thanksgiving.
Insert eye roll here.
Their reasons seems noble enough - people should be at home with their families, it's America's holiday, etc. I'm all for family and celebrating, but let me tell you something: this proud American will be shopping on Thanksgiving, and I'm going to tell you why.
Their reasons seems noble enough - people should be at home with their families, it's America's holiday, etc. I'm all for family and celebrating, but let me tell you something: this proud American will be shopping on Thanksgiving, and I'm going to tell you why.
Do
you have any idea how many businesses are already open on Thanksgiving?
Do you know how many people are working, and have worked, on
Thanksgiving? Certainly you don't believe that this is the first year
that folks will be reporting to work on Thanksgiving. Do you realize
how impossible it is to shut down this vast country for an entire day?
Contrary to popular belief (I'm looking at you bloggers and passionate
Facebook posters), Thanksgiving is not a day about family for many
Americans. In fact, my husband has always had to work on Thanksgiving.
Many of my family members work on Thanksgiving. Why? Because the show
must go on. Would it be great to have them all together on this
holiday? Sure. But it's just not going to happen.
Let's
say for a moment that we could do the impossible - have everybody in
America at home to celebrate this American holiday with their families.
Oh, but wait, that's assuming everybody who lives in this country is an
American that shares the same values and you and I and want to stay at
home. I want us to refer back to our history books for a minute. Do you
remember why this country was founded? Do you know the tounge-in-cheek
nickname our country has? The melting pot. Not every person in this
country is American, and not every person in this country wants to
celebrate this American holiday.
But
this is OUR holiday! It's anti-American not to celebrate
Thanksgiving? I see....and it's so American to sit around stuffing
yourself and watching TV, right? Thanksgiving has turned into a day to
sit around and be glutenous, with a side of reflecting on why you're
thankful. Shouldn't you be thankful everyday anyway? I suppose I'd
rather have it turn into that, than say, Mexico's holiday. Cinco de
Mayo has almost no other identification other than a day to drink one's
self silly, pretending to be Latino for a day (news flash: drinking
Corona and eating tacos on May 5th
doesn't make you Latino). Every bar in Mexico is open on "their" day,
why can't we shop on "ours"?? So much for the importance of holidays
dedicated to specific countries.
How
many of you have a crazy relative? Maybe two crazy relatives? Or maybe
you don't have family in town; maybe you can't afford to be with your
family. Do you think these people relish the idea of spending an entire
day (consuming more calories than one needs in a week) with A. crazy
relatives or B. alone? Do you think that maybe, just maybe, these folks
welcome a distraction, or a reason to "reluctantly" skip the family
distractions? Or maybe folks want to take the chance at extra pay?
I
saw a post tonight that made me shake my head. Somebody commented on
an anti-shopping blog, stating her son was a Target employee, and would
be fired if he didn't work on Thanksgiving, and concluded that Target is
a horrible company. Wait, so you mean that if a business is operating
and an employee fails to show up at work as scheduled, they get fired?!
Blasphemy!!! Are you at all familiar with the concept of
accountability?! Target isn't a bad company, you're a bad mother! Yes,
your son will be fired if he doesn't show up at work. This is as true
for Thanksgiving as it is any other day that Target is open. I know
this is going to sound harsh, but your son was not forced to work at
Target It is his choice to go to work on Thanksgiving or not; in fact,
it's all of our choices to go to work on any day. We may not like the
consequence if we don't go in (hint: you'll probably lose your job), but
you always have a choice. If you work for a company that operates on
Thanksgiving, and this upsets you, do something about it. But don't for
a second think anybody is "making" you do something. Remember, you
always have a choice. It's a free country, remember? Free to be open
for business, free to choose to report to work at said business. Free
to choose not to report.
Most of you bloggers and anti-Thanksgiving shoppers are operating under false assumptions. Not every other business in this country was closed on Thanksgiving before this year. Not everybody wants to be at home with their families, not everybody has a family to be with, hell, not everybody even observes this holiday! Some people might even be ok with, maybe even welcome, this chance to work.
Most of you bloggers and anti-Thanksgiving shoppers are operating under false assumptions. Not every other business in this country was closed on Thanksgiving before this year. Not everybody wants to be at home with their families, not everybody has a family to be with, hell, not everybody even observes this holiday! Some people might even be ok with, maybe even welcome, this chance to work.
The
stores are only open because people are going to them and spending
money. I don't care how family-friendly a retail store is, they're
for-profit. This means they want, and need, to make money to survive.
Go back to our mini history lesson. Didn't those original pilgrims want
to be prosperous? What's so different about this?
Hm,
so we've already concluded that this country is a melting pot of all
different folks from all kinds of backgrounds, is built on the principle
of freedom, and was also founded by a desire to be prosperous. Dare I
say it: it makes more sense for stores to be open on Thanksgiving than
not to be! I'm kidding. Well, sort of kidding.
Let
me clarify - I am American. I do celebrate Thanksgiving, I do have a
family; my husband is one of those non-retail workers punching the time
clock on Thanksgiving. I'm also very much into family traditions, and
I've made some of the best memories with my family as we shop together
on Black Friday.
It's not just about getting the best deal. It's not about being
greedy. It's about being so excited to GIVE. It's not about foregoing
the thankful thoughts to focus on what I don't have, not at all. Could
we wait until Friday
to shop? Absolutely. But do I really love having something fun to do
after the turkey and thankful thoughts are done, something that doesn't
involve seeing who can resist the Triptophan coma the longest? You
bet.
So
yes, I'll be shopping on Thanksgiving. I'll be thankful that there are
cheerful associates who have honored their commitment to their employer
by showing up for a shift they may or may not be excited to have.
Also, I'll definitely be out before the sun comes up on Black Friday!
I'll be out with some of the most important people in my life, laughing
and having a great time. We'll have stories to tell about each gift we
get, which will be almost more important than the gift itself. Some of
my best holiday memories were made on Black Friday,
because we're genuinely having a great time kicking off the magical
holiday season. My shopping crew even ordered matching "Black Friday Shopping Crew" T-shirts this year. I know that will really get you haters going.
I have to argue that your act of "excited to give" sounds like such a crap excuse. If you wanted to give something, you could give time to your family! Is it really so dreadful in your household after dinner that you can't even manage to make conversation, play games, do crafts, etc...with your family? And who cares of retail workers "choose" to work retail, or that others must work on thanksgiving too. If you don't understand the concept of being humble, spending time with family, and not allowing big retailers to get richer and richer while paying their employees a measly 7.00 per hour, I feel terrible for you and your children if this is how you are raising them to believe. I'm so THANKFUL that my husband and i will be spending TIME on my daughter this Thanksgiving rather than money on her. Will she get Christmas gifts? Sure, but I've already taken care of that. No need to go out on one day (of many, since we are a close family) we have scheduled to spend time with each other. I have no hatred for you, but I pity you and others who think like you. One day when you are wiser, you will realize there is nothing better in life than spending time with the people you love.
ReplyDeleteI respect your opinions, and ask that you respect mine, and save your pity for somebody who truly needs it. Have you never considered that not every family is like yours, that not everybody has family to spend time with? The point of my original post was to get folks to think outside of the box, but I don't think I succeeded in your case.
DeleteI'll be spending the entire weekend with my family, and will enjoy every minute, but I'm lucky. I'm sorry you felt I was not being genuine when I expressed how excited I am to give to the ones I love. That's just who I am. Yes, time is important - like when I took a dramatic cut in pay for a employment position that allows me to spend more time with my family. But I, like yourself, also give physical tokens of love on Christmas, and it truly warms my heart to see those smiles on Christmas morning. There's no judging if that's wrong or right - it's just who I am.
Also, I did want to point out that the Federal minimum wage is $7.25/hour, therefore your reference to retail workers making $7 per hour is inaccurate, before taking holiday pay into consideration.
You deserve my pity if you truly think that there is NEED for retail stores to be open on Thanksgiving. I have looked at this from every aspect, and I just can't seem to find an argument that is great enough to change my opinion. Let me get this straight. You're saying because some people may have no one to spend Thanksgiving with, that those who do should work anyway? I just think it's sad that so many people who would rather be with family are forced to work. I believe I read something about your take on being "forced" to work in your original post, but I will still call it that. I say that because many single parents, students, etc... are the ones working retail. They need that job to provide for themselves or their families, yet they are being told they can't take that day off, and if they want to, they will be terminated. If that's not being "forced" it is definitely a shady way to go about it, and terrible to put employees in a position like that. I think that retail stores can shut down for two days out of the year. At least retailers that don't even sell necessities (clothing stores, beauty stores, toy stores, etc...). Also, sorry 7.25 per hour, but not every employee working will get holiday pay, and some do not make federal minimum if they get tips or commission. Either way, if i was in their position, no amount of money could turn me away from my family, just as no amount of money saved will turn me into a shopper rather than a mother at home with her family.
DeleteSomething else to point out to other readers, but some states (like mine, I know Oregon does as well) require that all employees are paid at least minimum wage, which is actually pretty cool. If an employer does give holiday pay on top of that (here minimum is $9.19, Oregon is $8.95), it's a good financial motivator to work - for those that want to. I know that it's not your motivation - nor is it mine - but something to consider for others who have that opportunity.
Delete"I just can't seem to find an argument that is great enough to change my opinion" - I couldn't have said it better myself! That's the beauty of this country: we are all entitled to our own opinions. I'm glad we don't all think alike.
Happy Thanksgiving!