Black Friday has roots in America dating back to the 1960s. This Black Friday was when people flooded the streets of Philadelphia the Friday after Thanksgiving to watch the annual Army-Navy Football Game. One downside to black Friday was the opportunistic shoplifters who took the chance to steal from local stores during the chaos.

     The 80s were when the modern trend started, people would buy for the holiday season the Friday after Thanksgiving. Beginning in the 80’s, many people would stand in line for the best deals possible after waking up at 4 am. Today, it has become a staple of the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, and Benjamin students took the chance to hit the stores.

   In addition, Cyber Monday, the Monday after Thanksgiving has become an equally popular day for deal hunting. The first Cyber Monday began in 2005 when the National Retail Federation recognized the Monday after Thanksgiving. 

    The most popular places to shop nationally are JCPenney and Macy’s. In our school, Sephora and Amazon are some favored destinations. Many people take Black Friday shopping seriously and dedicate their entire day to it. 58.8% of Benjamin students said they went Black Friday shopping; the majority chose to shop online instead of in person. People bought a whole scheme of things including clothing, shoes, make-up, and lots more. The most popular purchases were clothing, make-up, and shoes. Clothes were the favorite purchase by far, with 70% of students making an addition to their wardrobe.

   Rebecca Benfield (8) enjoyed shopping both online and in-store this Black Friday. During Black Friday, “[her] favorite thing [she] bought was a Michael Kors handbag and platform purple Converse.” Some students are more extreme shoppers, like Olivia Trousdell (7) who “bought everything [she] saw that was on sale.” Her stores of choice were Lululemon and Sephora. Holden Peck (6) visited Macy’s to go shopping with his family. They bought clothes and accessories. Peck says, “We started going [shopping] in the past couple of years, but normally we don’t go.” 

  Benjamin students and people nationwide had a great opportunity to make purchases in advance of the holiday season this year. From fashion items to household utilities, Black Friday will remain a staple American holiday and the beginning of the traditional Christmas season which is so prevalent in our society.