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This holiday season activists continue calls for economic boycott and redirecting money to Black businesses in response to continued racial and societal injustices.
(Source: FinalCall.com) Thanksgiving weekend has traditionally been the kickoff to the holiday shopping season. But in recent years, the ongoing fight for justice in the face of rampant police brutality has led to economic boycotts across the country.
The movement to #BoycottBlackFriday has made legions of Black people more selective about how much they spend and with whom they are spending. The anti-spending effort will continue this year, hoping to crash sales the Friday after Thanksgiving.
While the impact and effectiveness of economic boycotts have been widely debated, poor sales this holiday season could cripple struggling retailers. In October 2017, the National Retail Federation forecast an increase of 3.6 to 4 percent in sales over last year which translates to between $678.75 billion to $682 billion, up from $655.8 billion last year.
While encouraging, the news of a potentially profitable fourth quarter won’t be enough to make up for deficits many companies have accumulated all year long.
Bloomberg reported that since 2016, the industry has experienced what is being dubbed a “retail apocalypse.” Despite plans to open 3,044 new stores this year, the first three quarters of 2017 have resulted in a staggering announcement of 6,752 closings—the highest in retail history. As of June, Bankruptcy.com reported that at least 300 retailers had already filed bankruptcy. By the end of the calendar year, Credit Suisse predicted that as many as 8,600 brick-and-mortar storefronts will close their doors for good.
With Black people now being encouraged to use their estimated $1.2 trillion in spending power as a weapon against injustice and a tool to support Black-owned businesses, the effects of continued economic boycotts could be insurmountable. [READ FULL REPORT]
