The Dangers of Black Friday

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Sarah Quinones, Editor

Here it is, it’s that time of the season once again, where all items are found at extremely low prices and moms across the country become world class wrestlers. Every year, Black Friday marks the kickoff of the holiday shopping frenzy, not to mention it’s generally the busiest shopping day of the year. According to the Huffington Post, last year nearly 150 million Americans went shopping on Black Friday, spending more than $57 billion. Now those are some long lines!

It might be hard to believe, but over 100 Americans were injured and 10 found dead over the last nine years. From the angry mobs fighting over flat screen tvs to the ridiculously long lines and dozens of campers outside, there’s no telling what could happen to innocent bystanders during this chaotic day. As it states on BlackFridayDeathCount.com, the most recent incident occurred in 2016 when a San Antonio man was shot dead helping a woman being beaten and mugged in a Walmart parking lot. In 2016, a shirtless man used his belt as a whip out side of a Vancouver Black Friday sale. This arises the question, is Walmart the only store that experiences injuries and fatalities? From many sources, surprisingly it isn’t, but then this also arises the question of should stores have more security during Black Friday? The answer is absolutely, these incidents could have been avoided or even had a lessened aftermath if there were more security placed not only in the stores but around the parking lots as well.

While this may seem scary, Black Friday will always be one of the holiday kickoffs that make it easy for parents to get everything their children and loved ones ever desired. Just always be careful about who you snatch a flat screen tv from, you never know what kind of character you might run into. Fortunately if Black Friday isn’t your thing, Cyber Monday, that following Monday, is the way to go to get those cheap gifts that will make your loved ones eyes flutter.