Friday, February 28, was an economic blackout day: no purchases from big corporations such as Amazon, Walmart, and Target and no use of credit cards, so the big creditors can’t earn money from them. Support local businesses and use cash. The goal is to remind big businesses that we, The People, have the power.
While I love the idea, I think the implementation is insufficient. This effort shouldn’t be a one-day thing. It should be a long-term change to how we consume and where we spend our money.
One day is not enough.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a response to racial segregation on the public transportation system in Montgomery, Alabama. It lasted from December 5, 1955, to December 20, 1956. For 381 days, black residents of Montgomery organized carpools, walked, biked, and used any other means to get around other than the bus system. The boycott ended only after Browder v Gayle established that segregation on buses was unconstitutional. The black residents of Montgomery banded together and changed their lives for more than a year until their demands were met.
Suffragettes picketed outside the White House for 18 months in all kinds of weather for women’s rights. Many women, like Alice Paul, were imprisoned for their actions. When they went on a hunger strike while imprisoned, they were retrained and force-fed raw eggs using a funnel and tubing. Paul was imprisoned for 7 months and eventually released along with other suffragettes after newspapers covered their story and garnered public support for Women’s Suffrage. The 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote, was ratified on August 18, 1920, after nearly a century of work. Many of the women who started the fight didn’t live to see the fruits of their labor realized. (If you want to learn more about this story, watch Iron Jawed Angels.)
Are we not made of sterner stuff? Are we only capable of one day of “no shopping?” A one-day economic blackout just means people will shop the day before or after. That’s not a loss to corporations because they still get our money. What we need is prolonged, substantial change to make an impact. Here are changes you can make that will make an impact.:
- Cancel subscriptions or shift to a different service. I canceled my Audible subscription and switched to LibroFM instead. LibroFM shares the profits with Indie Bookstores. You can choose the local bookstore you support with each purchase, so your money can stay close to home. Bookshop.org sells hardback and ebooks. Just like LibroFM, you can select the Indie Bookstores you want to support and they earn a cut of the profits for every purchase you make. Buying from LibroFM or Bookshop.org is like buying from a small, local bookstore. My Amazon subscription expires in April. I am already looking for other places to purchase what I need and have stopped purchasing from Amazon. It may take me longer to find what I need and it may cost more in some instances, but keeping my money out of the hands of big business and local as much as possible is important to me, so I don’t mind the extra work.
- Support stores that have the same values as you. It just takes a little internet research to determine the values of the places you shop, but where you buy and what you buy sends a message to companies. I recently joined Costco. They value Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives and treat their workers well, behavior that aligns with my values. Many of the things I purchased at Amazon and a few from Chewy are available at Costco and usually for less. In the couple of weeks I have been a Costco member, I have saved almost the cost of my membership AND supported a business whose values align with mine. I haven’t been shopping at Hobby Lobby and Walmart nor have I eaten at Chic-fil-A for years. It was an adjustment at first, but I don’t miss those places now. I also stopped shopping at Target once they rolled back their DEI initiatives. I quickly found what I needed at other stores that have values that align with mine.
- Shop local. Shop small. According to the University of Minnesota-Duluth, for every $1.00 spent locally, an additional $0.25 of economic activity is generated locally. This is because independent businesses are more likely to be reinvested back into the community and create local jobs. Buying local helps our communities grow and stay economically healthy.
- Buy less. The first and biggest thing we can do is buy less stuff. No, you don’t need a bigger TV when the one you already have is still working just fine. No, you don’t need a new wardrobe every year. No, you don’t need the newest cell phone the moment it comes out. We can also purchase gently used items that meet our needs from thrift stores, garage sales, or other person-to-person selling options. Need a frame for a family photo? Goodwill has a great selection of frames that can be used as-is or adjusted to meet your needs with little work. Need some new pants for work? A consignment shop or other second-hand shop probably has something that will work for you. Check those places first before buying new. Also, a lot of second-hand and consignment shops are local businesses, which is a bonus.
- Move your money to a small, local bank or credit union. Small-town banks and credit unions tend to be more locally focused on the communities they serve. They are more invested in their communities than big banks like US Bank, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America. Most of these small banks offer the same services as the big banks (online bill pay, mobile deposit, online account information) and a personal touch the big banks don’t. Plus, your money stays local. It can take time to shift to a small bank, but it has a significant impact on your community for a relatively short inconvenience.
- Donate to organizations you believe in. The money I am not spending on my Audible and Amazon memberships I am donating to the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota and the ACLU. Spending less means we can donate more to help those in need and to fight for the rights of all.
These are all adjustments I have made in the past couple of months. I took it one step at a time and found other ways to meet my needs and make changes that send less of my money to big businesses or businesses that don’t share my values. What is happening in our nation is uncomfortable and Orwellian. We have to make substantial changes if we want to make a difference. Focus on prolonged, sustained change in the way you spend your money and where you spend it. If the Montgomery Bus Boycott or the Suffragettes’ food strike had only lasted a day, nothing would have changed. We need to focus on the long term, not on just one day.
One day is not enough.