By Julianne Malveaux
Dr. Julianne Malveaux (Photo by Jessica Koscielniak for Cal State LA)
Every year, corporations expect us to line up, log on, and lose our minds for Black Friday. They expect us to stretch our budgets, drain our accounts, and pretend that “doorbuster deals” are some kind of patriotic ritual. But this year, a coalition led by Black Voters Matter, Indivisible, and Until Freedom is calling on us to do something radically simple—and profoundly powerful:
A spending freeze from November 28 through December 1.
No Black Friday splurges. No retail rush. No “Buy Now” pressure.
By flexing our Economic Muscles, we can challenge the status quo and inspire others to join the Economic Muscles movement.
Why?
Because we ain’t buying it—literally and figuratively.
Why This Freeze Matters: Flexing Our Economic Muscles
Let’s start with the basics: Black consumers wield more than $1.7 trillion in annual spending power. Our dollars keep the retail economy humming. Our purchases shape markets, trends, strategies, and profits. Retailers depend on the holiday season to make their year—and they depend heavily on us.
So, when we withhold our dollars, even for four days, the impact is real. Corporations measure every hour, every transaction, every data point. They know exactly when consumers shift behavior—and why. A coordinated dip in spending during the biggest retail weekend of the year is not a whisper. It’s a shout.
It’s us saying:
You don’t get our money while you undermine our communities.
You don’t profit off us while cutting DEI.
You don’t get holiday loyalty while enabling anti-democratic forces.
If corporations can fund political agendas that hurt us, roll back inclusion with a smile, and pretend neutrality while siding with injustice, then we respond the only way they understand: with our wallets closed.
The Coalition Leading the Charge
Black Voters Matter, Indivisible, and Until Freedom aren’t doing this for symbolism. They are doing it to apply economic pressure where moral pressure has failed. This is a coalition of organizers who understand history, power, and the long game. They are reminding us that protest isn’t only marches and petitions—sometimes it’s stillness, discipline, and withholding.
This coalition is calling out corporations like Amazon, Target, and Home Depot—not because they sell products we don’t want, but because they invest in politics we can’t accept.
And they’re right to do it.
What This Freeze Accomplishes
1. It hits corporations in the only place they truly feel pain: revenue.
Black Friday is their Super Bowl. When we don’t show up, the scoreboard changes. A four-day drop in consumer volume is measurable. It forces executives to pay attention.
2. It exposes the myth that we must consume to be good citizens.
We’re tired of being told patriotic duty looks like overstuffing shopping carts. Consumerism is not freedom. Conscious spending is.
3. It strengthens our internal discipline and our collective power.
Let’s be honest—many of us overspend during this season. A freeze creates space to reassess:
• Do I need this, or am I being manipulated?
• Can these dollars go to a Black-owned business instead—after the freeze?
• Should I put this money toward savings, debt relief, or mutual aid?
4. It reframes the conversation around economic justice.
We’re not freezing spending because we’re angry shoppers.
We’re freezing spending because we’re informed citizens.
We aren’t punishing corporations. We’re educating them.
If you undervalue Black consumers, if you undermine democracy, if you retreat from racial equity—then we have a moral obligation to respond.
Yes, We’re Angry. And We Should Be.
We’re angry that DEI has been reduced to a buzzword.
We’re angry that corporate leaders fold under political pressure.
We’re angry that Black communities still carry the highest costs—higher inflation, higher rents, higher interest rates—while being told to “celebrate savings” on cheap goods made overseas.
We’re angry that our political rights are under attack while corporations stay silent.
Anger is not the problem.
Inaction is.
This freeze turns anger into strategy.
What Happens After the Freeze?
We redirect.
We reinvest.
We rebuild.
We support Black-owned businesses.
We put dollars into our communities.
We choose purpose over impulse.
We spend with clarity instead of conditioning.
The Bottom Line
From November 28 through December 1, we close our wallets—and open our eyes. Not because we are powerless, but because we are powerful. Not because we are broke, but because we are strategic. Not because we are done fighting, but because we are just getting started.
This is what it looks like to flex our economic muscles.
This is what it sounds like when we say:
We ain’t buying it.
Not this time.
Dr. Julianne Malveaux is a DC based economist and author. www.juliannemalveaux.com.