Dating back to the 50s Black Friday has always followed the day after Thanksgiving and shoppers have flocked to the to sales early Friday morning. Thanksgiving was once a holiday where families came together to feast and spend time together. However in the past few years Black Friday shopping has creeped into Thursday during the Thanksgiving festivities and extended all throughout Friday.

As a society we have to decide where to draw the line. Are sales at retail store more important than spending time with family? Lining up on Friday morning at stores is one thing, but leaving Thanksgiving dinner to shop is another. This year JCPenny’s was one of the retailers opened the earliest at 3 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. Most other stores opened on Thanksgiving ranged from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Another retailer, Macy’s, has had their doors open on Thanksgiving for the past four years. These companies would not continue to open their stores on the holiday if customers stopped coming. In order to stop the problem, as a society, we need to stop becoming the problem.

Even though some may choose to shop others are forced to work extreme hours on Thanksgiving to accommodate shoppers. Dinner are needed to be rescheduled, some are completely left out of the festivities, and others just cancel Thanksgiving altogether because they need to report to work so early on the holiday. Others are scheduled to work overnights shift which can affect the overall day in general, knowing you have to stay up all night. Ironically, these shoppers are leaving the same family members on Thanksgiving to buy them gifts for the holiday season.

Black Friday has become a huge ordeal in our society and maybe even an unofficial holiday. Thousands and thousands of people participate and the sales are what draws them in. On Thanksgiving day at a local Kohl’s, the line wrapped almost to the back of store and one customer said he waited over 45 minutes for two pair of jeans. There is nothing wrong with a good deal and getting your money’s worth. However there is no reason it can’t wait until Friday. If we continue on this path Thanksgiving one day could follow in Black Friday’s shadow completely.