Black Friday: The good, the bad and the ugly

The Friday after Thanksgiving — also known as Black Friday — has long been considered a nationwide shopping extravaganza. It has become a synonym for Thanksgiv­ing, much like pumpkin pie and roast­ed turkey. The beginning of the holiday season has begun and it seems like it’s starting earlier and earlier each passing year. Some stores are now opening their doors on Thursday evening, cutting their employees’ Thanksgiving dinner and precious time with family and friends short — transforming the family holiday tradition into “Black Friday Eve.” The intrusion on family time has become so popular that an internet petition was started, asking for retailers such as Walmart, Best Buy and Target to push back their early doorbusters to its in­tended day.

However, retailers and other sup­porters argue that stores have every right to open early if consumers demand it. Black Friday is an important event for the retail industry, and it creates jobs and lowers unemployment rates, which helps the economy.

This year, Black Friday is Nov. 23. Major retail stores such as Walmart, Tar­get, J.C. Penney, Old Navy, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Best Buy and Sears will open their doors as early as 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving.

Walmart has even planned to kick off its Black Friday event at 4 p.m. Thanks­giving Day, with their first-ever Light Up Black Friday party for customers. Walmart stores across the nation are ex­pected to give away 4 million cups of Keurig coffee and 2 million Christmas cookies during the two-hour party. How­ever, its Black Friday sales don’t official­ly begin until 6 p.m. Thanksgiving night.

While some retailers are not giving their employees a break on Thanksgiving, stores like Nordstrom, H&M, Office De­pot, Big 5, Burlington and Pier 1 Imports are sitting out on the early openings and staying closed Thanksgiving night — sticking to the intended Friday.

Depending on the type of person you are, the Friday after Thanksgiving is either the best day or the worst day of the year to go shopping — it may have the best deals, but it also is the most crowded.

THE HISTORY OF BLACK FRIDAY:

There was a myth that went around a couple years ago, claiming the term “Black Friday” originated from the practice of selling off slaves — after Thanksgiving — for a discount to plan­tation owners in need of more helpers for the upcoming winter. However, that theory has since been proven to be a myth. The earliest record of the phrase “Black Friday” was in 1961 by the old Philadelphia Police Department’s traf­fic squad. It was used to describe the heavy and disruptive pedestrian and vehicle traffic that occurred in the city’s downtown stores on the day after Thanksgiving. The biggest shopping days normally are the two following Thanksgiving Day, resulting in massive traffic jams. It became customary for officers in Philadelphia to refer to the post-Thanksgiving days as “Black Fri­day” and “Black Saturday.”

Normally, Black Friday deals can be questionable — are they even worth the hassle? Are you scoring a good deal? Is it worth getting trampled by angry bar­gain hunters? However, the holiday season is here and there are some deals for college students that are worth your time, energy and money.

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Black Friday Deals

BESTBUY

•Samsung Chromebook 11.6”: $99
•Apple iPad Mini 4 128GB: $249
•Amazon Echo Dot 2nd Gen: $19
•Amazon Echo Dot 3rd Gen: $24
•Apple MacBook Air 13.3”: $799
•HP DeskJet 2624 Wireless All-In-One Instant Ink Printer: $19
•PNY 16GB USB 2.0 flash drive: $3
•Cherman 3.5 Liter Air Fryer: $29
•Lenovo 2-in-1 Touchscreen Chromebook: $179

 

TARGET

•Beats Solo 3 Wireless Neighborhood Collection: $179
•Fujifilm Instax Mini 9 Camera: $59 with free $15 gift card
•Amazon Fire 7 tablet 8GB: $29
•Canon MG3620 wireless printer, scanner and copier: $29
•Keurig K-Mini single-serve coffee maker: $49

 

STAPLES

•Lexar 16GB USB 2.0 flash drive: $4
•Fujifilm Instax Mini 9 Camera: $49 with free Fujifilm Instax Mini Rainbow film
•Seagate 1TB Backup Plus Ultra Slim external portable hard drive: $49

 

WALMART

•Samsung Chromebook 3: $99
•Apple iPad 6th generation: $249
•Google Home Mini: $25

 

FRED MEYER

•Keurig K-Classic Brewer: $49
•Chefman 3.5 Liter Air Fryer: $34
•Beats EP On-Ear Headphones: $99
•Apple iPad 9.7” 32GB 6th Gen: $229
•HP DeskJet 3637 All-in-One Printer: $29

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