Black Friday has always been a controversial topic, especially with tired employees who have to work the day after (or sometimes during) a national holiday. Customers go totally wild on the busiest shopping day of the year – and we literally mean wild. People get so amped up by the super-saver deals that violence and chaos have become an expectation. Already, two people have been killed during this year’s Black Friday, making us infinitely more grateful that online shopping exists.
A 20 year-old New Jersey man was fatally shot outside a Macy’s department store in Atlantic county. He was shot multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene, which had a bullet-riddled SUV and many shell casings. The man’s 26 year-old brother was also shot in the leg, but is in stable condition at a local hospital.
Another man – this time in Reno, Nevada – was fatally shot following an angry dispute over a parking spot outside of a Wal-Mart. Police have characterized it as a road rage incident between two men with weapons; the 33 year-old died instantly at the scene after being shot. They have located all people involved in the shooting, along with vehicles and weapons.
Of course, many others have been injured during Black Friday; it’s almost become part of the tradition, as demonstrated by the above video. There’s even a website that tracks the reported deaths and injuries that follow the day after Thanksgiving each year.
Not only is this an awful representation of American capitalism but these incidents are incredibly sad for the families involved. Two men have died because we as a nation take a made-up shopping holiday more seriously than the one we spend with our loved ones. Now, the holidays will never be the same for these families ever again. All for the sake of shopping.
Black Friday definitely earned its name, didn’t it?
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[H/T: Cosmopolitan]