It has now spread to other countries, including South Africa. Chaotic scenes have been recorded, as bargain hunters barge their way into shops.
But an image on Facebook suggests the holiday has a sinister history. The post claims “the term ‘Black Friday’ originated with the practice of selling off slaves on the day after Thanksgiving”.
It asks: “Do we really need to embrace this kind of torture?”
First used decades after slavery ended
The claim has been doing the rounds for years. In 2013, fact-checking website Snopes found there was no evidence to support it.
Their investigation revealed that the term “Black Friday” was likely first used in 1951 – over 80 years after slavery ended in the US.
In the 1950s the day after Thanksgiving was not a holiday. Snopes reports that workers would often call in sick so they could enjoy a four-day weekend. Employers soon nicknamed the day “Black Friday”.
It’s also been used by US police, a result of the large unruly crowds and congested traffic experienced on the day.
Another theory is that the day marks the time of the year when shops first make a profit, moving out of the red and into the black. - Africa Check (18/03/19)
For publishers: what to do if your post is rated false
A fact-checker has rated your Facebook or Instagram post as “false”, “altered”, “partly false” or “missing context”. This could have serious consequences. What do you do?
Click on our guide for the steps you should follow.
Publishers guideAfrica Check teams up with Facebook
Africa Check is a partner in Meta's third-party fact-checking programme to help stop the spread of false information on social media.
The content we rate as “false” will be downgraded on Facebook and Instagram. This means fewer people will see it.
You can also help identify false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.
Further Reading
‘A time of crisis’: fact-checking South African president Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2023 state of the nation address
As he tried to reignite the enthusiasm of a wearied nation, did the president get his facts right? As we found out, it's all in the details.
[email protected]: The challenges of working across Africa
Misinformation knows no borders and Africa Check often responds to similar false claims from country to country.
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