It’s white, green, gold, yellow, or any other color you could think of. Or it could be Fabulous, Fun, or any other cool adjective. Or it could just be a… well, Friday. Could be anything but black. Because, guess what, like everything else it is a ‘western conspiracy’. To defame our holy day.
Friday is a holy day. No doubt about that. But how on earth is it an insult when we call it black? Why can’t we just call it what it is. Black Friday.
Why is it called Black Friday
There are many theories around it. Not one that terms Black in a negative way. Most refer to black as opposite to red… like in book keeping, profit is shown in black, and loss is shown in red. And since the stores turn up big profits on this day, thanks to discounts and special offers, they started calling it Black Friday.
In reality, it’s the day after Thanksgiving. That’s when stores offer discounts, and customers flock stores to avail these offers. What’s in it that is disgraceful?
What’s with our ‘kaala’ obsession?
When the concept started getting some traction with some brands starting to announce Black Friday deals in Pakistan, there was a backlash. A lot of Pakistanis did not like it. A majority of them thought it was disgraceful. There were debates and uproar, on social media and in private conversations. Some called it a western conspiracy. Others would just curse the brands for not keeping in view the religious sentiments.
Well, how about hajr-e-aswad? It is black. Does calling it black not hurt our religious sentiments?
The Council Of Islamic Ideology took up the matter
And they recommended to rename Black Friday to Blessed Friday. This is Government of Pakistan, deciding what to call a day when the brands run discounted deals. Wow! So it is official now. “Blessed Friday”.
err… aren’t all Fridays blessed?
And is it Government’s job to decide what to call it?
Misplaced Priorities
As always, we are focused on optics only. I mean, when you are stealing a concept, why not steal it in entirety? Or don’t steal it at all. We don’t celebrate Christmas, do we? So why do we need these nominal discounts in the month of November? What for?
Shouldn’t we be questioning the rationale behind reducing prices a month before Christmas? Shouldn’t it be before Eid? But that’s when we do exactly the opposite. Raise the prices. Create artificial shortages of basic household items. We do whatever we can to mint more money. All in the holy month of Ramadan.
Is it halal, dear Council of Islamic Ideology?
Is it halal to raise prices a month before Eid? Any recommendations to combat artificially create a shortage of basic household items in Ramadan?
Can we shift focus away from optics, for once, and on the things that actually matter?
Apparently not. Because even in 2018, Black Friday deals by almost all brands in Pakistan are on full flow. And they are calling it “Blessed Friday 2018”. What they don’t explain, or care about, is that why the day after Thanksgiving is Blessed Friday in Pakistan?
