The air is cold to the bone, but the chill is masked by the heated tension as hundreds of people try to push their way towards the doors. People bumping and pushing and shoving each other as molecules do under pressure. This kind of pressure is bound to catalyze some sort of combustion, and it usually does. The anticipation usually precedes verbal, mental, and even physical abuse that gets everyone wound up in a mass chaotic reaction.  This dark night under the stars isn’t any ordinary night, its black Friday.  

Nov 25 was the day people around America spent 11.4 billion dollars on doorbuster deals in the wee hours of the morning. This year, several stores like Wal-Mart opened their door late thanksgiving night.  This did absolutely nothing to prevent the chaos and brawling for bargains that comes with black Friday.

“The people at Wal-Mart were crazy.” junior, Maycie Ramirez said.”I literally had to stare this elderly man down just go get a bed spread for my mother.  Everybody was screaming and shouting, and even worse, little innocent and defenseless babies were, there. I think that’s bad parenting to bring you baby to such craziness.”

When products are marked as 20 to 90% off, prolonged waiting in lines is inevitable.  

“I was waiting at Kohl’s for three hours,” junior Joselyn Gutierrez said. “The line went completely to the other end of the store. And all we need to buy was a waffle iron.  I think they should have speedy check outs there.”

The combined components of fighting for one’s Christmas presents and then waiting to buy them leads to violent instances.

“There was a lady macing people at Best Buy,” sophomore Chelsea Chapmond said.  “They even had armed policemen to protect customers from people like her.”

Black Friday got its name from stores increase in revenue.  Businesses record their losses in red and their gains in black.  Many stores see mostly black at this time of year, like Target, whose revenue increased by 1.8% and Macy’s by 3.9%. The stores may benefit from black Friday, but because of all the pandemonium on this day, and name brand prices usually not going on clearance until Christmas, others don’t see the point in going.

“My dad and I just drove around town on that day, and made fun of everyone who was waiting in line,” sophomore Alex Phelan said.  “We went to see a movie instead of waiting out in the cold.