Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

U. Kansas students respond to "Buy Nothing Day"
By Sasha Roe
University Daily Kansan (U. Kansas)
11/21/2007

(U-WIRE) LAWRENCE, Kan. — For some students, pumpkin pie and football aren't the first things that come to mind at Thanksgiving; To some it's dollar signs and shopping bags.

But the international campaign of "Buy Nothing Day" encourages people not give in to consumerism this Friday.

Buy Nothing Day is an international day of protest recognized on the day after Thanksgiving, also known as Black Friday, which is one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Buy Nothing Day was founded by Canadian artist Ted Dave in 1992 and is now supported by the Canadian media group and magazine "Adbusters," an anti-consumerist organization that publishes a political and social activist magazine that contains no ads.

Paul Cooper, Adbusters campaign manager, said Buy Nothing Day was an opportunity for society to step back from over-consumerism. He said there were two aspects to the day - one being psychological and resisting the marketing madness of Friday, and moving towards the true spirit of the season. Cooper said the second part was more ecological - realizing that 80 percent of the world's resources are used by 20 percent of the world's citizens.

Cooper said Adbusters encouraged people to take part in events other than shopping on Friday, and different activities were scheduled internationally. He said common displays of activism on the day included cutting up credit cards in a mall, or walking around a mall doing a "zombie walk," with blank stares. Cooper said the easiest way to participate was just to commit to not buying anything on Friday. Cooper said he thought the day was important to make society think twice about their materialistic actions.

"Few people take the time to consider different ways of living," Cooper said. "They are too busy to examine the way they live."

Spencer White, Independence sophomore, said he joined the Facebook group for Buy Nothing Day not only because he didn't plan to shop on Friday, but because as a college student it was a normal routine to buy nothing.

"It's funny really, I saw that and I thought, 'Almost every day is buy nothing day,' " White said.

White said he thought there were better ways to find Christmas presents than rushing to a mall on Friday. White, a musician, said he planned to record Christmas music and give his family the CDs. He said he thought the nation had become obsessed with materialism, and he was happy not to participate on the biggest shopping day of the year.

"I'm certainly not going to be shopping on Friday," White said.

Christina Williams, Wichita junior, said she planned to sleep in and not take part in the crazy shopping day. She said she didn't have to worry about it being a family thing because her mother didn't enjoy the shopping either. However, Williams said she might consider shopping earlier in the week to get some game-day gear.

"I might go over to the Union on Tuesday though," Williams said.

However, Leah Wewer, Leoti senior, said she didn't want to miss the Friday bargains. Wewer said it was a family tradition to hit the stores early and find Christmas presents. She said she and her family usually looked at ads the day before and picked out what they wanted to get on Black Friday. She said by 5 a.m. on Friday her family was ready to fight the crowds and find good deals.

For more information on Buy Nothing Day, students can visit the Web site at adbusters.org/metas/eco/bnd/, or join the event on Facebook.

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