Just like the hundreds of millions of Americans around the country, I love Black Friday. Shopping? Good! Sales? Even better! Shopping and sales available online? The best! I still remember one year when my parents, my brother and I drove out to Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Woodbury, New York at 11 p.m. on Thanksgiving Eve and shopped through the wee hours of the morning. What a time to be alive!
But when did this day of shopping ’til you drop begin? Unfortunately, nowhere good. The first recorded use of the term “Black Friday” was applied to the United States gold market crash in 1869. This term didn’t really resurface until the 1950s, when police officers in Philadelphia used the term to describe the chaos of the day after Thanksgiving, during which shoppers and tourists alike would flood into Philadelphia in preparation for the Army-Navy football game held every Saturday after Thanksgiving. By 1961, the term had caught on in Philadelphia, but it wasn’t until 1985 that it became used nationwide. Once the phrase caught on, retailers transformed the narrative of “Black Friday” into a positive one, in which Black Friday was the first day American stores turned a profit, shifting their balance sheets from “in the red” (losing money) to “in the black” (turning a profit).
Today, Black Friday is the single busiest shopping day of the year in the U.S., serving as the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season. In 2024, U.S. consumers spent a total of $10.8 billion online on Black Friday alone. In addition to that, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Black Friday, online shoppers spent an average of $11.3 million. These numbers add up to a total that was over 10% more than what was spent the previous Black Friday and more than double the amount spent on Black Friday in 2017. Black Friday isn’t just a way for consumers to save money, it’s also a way for economists to track the state of the U.S. economy. According to Investopedia, Black Friday sales are a way for economists to measure the confidence of the average American when it comes to their discretionary spending. In other words, the amount of money spent on Black Friday reflects how comfortable Americans are with spending their money on non-essential items.
Even outside the U.S., Black Friday is a big day for shopping. While Thanksgiving may be a uniquely American holiday, the day after has become embraced by countries all over the world. It first emerged from the U.S. in 2008, when Canada succumbed to the appeal of Black Friday, and continued this path in 2010 with the United Kingdom and in 2013 with Oceania. Today, even Germany, Brazil and France take part. In fact, 50-60% of the world’s 195 countries celebrate Black Friday in some way, shape or form.
Unfortunately, all this buying and selling has significant effects on the environment. Professor Phil Purnell of the University of Leeds estimated that trucks delivering Black Friday purchases would release 400,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in the United Kingdom in 2024 alone. By the same token, the European Federation for Transport and Environment (T&E), a group of advocates for clean transport and energy in Europe, published an analysis of truck pollution during Black Friday. Their research estimated that Black Friday trucks in 2024 throughout Europe would release 1.2 million tons of carbon dioxide, which is 94% more carbon dioxide than in an average week in Europe.
This holiday also impacts those involved in the actual work of packaging, shipping and delivering products. During this period, workers labor for up to 16 hours each day. In 2023, Amazon workers held strikes and protests on Black Friday in more than 30 countries as part of an effort to lobby for higher wages and improved working conditions.
Fordham University’s environmental plan references these consumer patterns. The Laudato Si’ action plan urges each Fordham student to “see [oneself] as a citizen, not as a consumer.” While this is a nice idea, I believe a student can see oneself as both a consumer and a citizen, especially on a quintessential American holiday like Black Friday! I certainly agree that buying 100 items on Black Friday is wasteful and unnecessary. However, buying one or two items that are high up on your wish list and are nicely discounted is what America is truly about.
Despite the environmental drawbacks of Black Friday, I think the holiday is here to stay, and for good reason. Sometimes, all you want in life is 70% off at your favorite retailer. Speaking of, I really hope my family and I go back to Woodbury this Black Friday to find a nice deal on a product we probably wouldn’t buy otherwise.
Emma Kelner, FCLC ’29, is an undeclared major from Staten Island, New York.
