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Black Friday Turns Violent…Again
Black Friday shopping may mean exposing your kids to violence.
It’s safe to say that Black Friday is becoming just as known for its consumer violence as it is for getting good deals on holiday items. Many parents would never take their kids to any Black Friday sales, but many others do, as ill-advised as that might be.
This year, Black Friday has already turned violent in a Los Angeles Wal-mart and a North Carolina mall.
A 20-year old woman resorted to pepper-spraying a crowd of shoppers when it looked like she might not get the items she wanted.
The NY Daily News reports that witnesses said shoppers “tore down video game displays, trampled merchandise and shoved each other for the deeply-discounted goods”. When shoppers started removing the coverings of electronics that the woman wanted, she went into defense mode in order to keep them away from the products:
“Somehow she was trying to use [the pepper spray] to gain an upper hand,” police Lt. Abel Parga said.
The woman managed to escape and has still not been found. Twenty shoppers, including children suffered injuries from the pepper spray.
In Fayetteville, North Carolina, gunfire broke out at a mall but no injuries were reported.
A few weeks ago, I had briefly considered doing some Black Friday shopping as I thought of the bargains, but between the early store openings (which cut right into the Thanksgiving holiday) and the fact that I still had a house full of people last night, I decided against it. I also had no desire to be stuck in a group of crazed shoppers. In my New York City neighborhood, I heard there were lines around the block at the local Toys R Us stores as early as 8pm.
Black Friday shopping has unfortunately become a symbol of the many things going wrong with our country: intense greed and selfishness, lack of compassion, and the notion that material things matter most. I want a good deal just as much as the next guy or gal, but what kind of message do we send to kids when we have to get a bargain at all costs?
It’s the complete opposite of what the holiday season is about.
Image: Wikipedia
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6 Comments
amywindsor commented on Nov 25 11 at 12:03 pmI couldn’t agree more. It’s like the American Dream has been replaced with the Consumerist Dream — buy everything you can with every cen that you earn, whoeve has the most stuff at the end wins. Ugh.
Danielle Sullivan commented on Nov 25 11 at 1:10 pmSometimes I can’t believe how horrid it has become, and it seems like a complete turn around from what I remember growing up.
Brandi commented on Nov 25 11 at 4:24 pmI was at Walmart at 10 pm when the craziness started. I wanted to get our daughter a two seat power wheels car, but there is no was I’m going to spend $300 for one gift for one child. Walmart had one for $99, so I thought it was worth a shot. My brother-in-law waited for it while his wife & I teamed up & grabbed a few other things for our kids. It was honestly one of the most terrifying sitations I’ve ever been in. I thought a riot had broken out in a different part of the store when it all started. It was completely unsafe. I’m not saying I won’t ever do it again, however, it will only be for BIG savings of at least $100 on one item.
Compare this to Toys R Us at 9 am (they opened at 9 pm), they still had at least one or two if not more of everything on my list & there were no lines. The store was a little full, but you could still push a cart around without any issues.
Brandt Hardin commented on Nov 25 11 at 4:25 pmIncidents such as these are sad and shameful for the world-view of our country. Just 24 hours after we are supposed to give thanks and show compassion for those in need, all of this comes to surface from the Capitalist mania the public is worked into by Big Business. I wrote an article about the true meaning behind our holiday and a warning about our national disgrace which is Black Friday at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2010/11/wishing-you-and-yours-bountiful-harvest.html
Linda, t.o.o. commented on Nov 27 11 at 10:00 pmIt surprises me that people still shop in stores. I shopped online all weekend and got everything I was looking for at great prices and I never had to leave the house.
bob commented on Nov 28 11 at 10:33 amWalmart killed Woolworths and then morphed into something yet more dismal, more miserable. There is no dignity.
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