Skip to content
  • Subscribe
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • Email
  • Home
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Entertainment
  • Features
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe to Ray’s Clumns
Suburban Chicagoland

Suburban Chicagoland

Original News, Features & Opinion on local and regional news you won't find anywhere else

  • About
    • About
    • Advertise
    • Our Writers
      • Ray Hanania
      • Bill Lipinski
      • Biography: Aaron Hanania
      • Steve Metsch
      • Steve Neuhaus
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Policy
    • Reach Out
  • Sections
    • Events
    • Opinion
    • News
    • Features
    • Seniors
    • Comic Strip
  • Library
    • “MIdnight Flight” Online Book
      • Midnight Flight Book Overview
      • Midnight Flight Introduction
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 1
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 2
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 3
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 4
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 5
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 6
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 7
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 8
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 9
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 10
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 11
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 12
      • Midnight Flight Chapter 13
    • Villages, Cities & Towns
    • Federal Office Holders
    • County Officials
    • Legislators
  • Subscribe to Ray’s Columns
  • Comment
  • Podcast
    • Ray Hanania on Politics
    • Two Guys on Politics
    • Hanania on Tiktok
  • News Wire
  • Toggle search form
  • Summer Smash Entertainer lineup 2025
    Summer Smash Festival returns this weekend June 20-22 at SeatGeek Bridgeview
  • Fireworks display for the 4th of July. Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania
    Orland Park Announces Independence Day Celebration July 3 Events
  • 05-23-25 Jeffery M. Leving
    Leving team’s court victory protected dad’s daughters from reported danger Dads' Rights
  • Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia
    Madigan sentenced to stiff seven and a half years in prison on corruption case Chicago
  • Attorneys Jeffery Leving Arthur Kallow
    Honoring Fathers: A Father’s Day Reflection Arthur Kallow
  • Cook County Treasurer Maria Papas
    Understanding Cook County Property Taxes: A Guide for Homeowners Blogger
  • 06-04-25 Two Guys on Politics Background Zoom LOGO with images
    Two Guys on Politics Podcast on Elon Musk, Trump’s Parade, LA Riots, and Middle East ban Bill Lipinski
  • 05-23-25 Jeffery M. Leving
    Often overlooked single fathers deserve praise this Father’s Day Blogger
  • Fentanyl drugs Courtesy of the DEA
    Five Defendants Charged in Federal Investigation Targeting Fentanyl Sales in Chicago Crime
  • Illinois State Senator Michael Hastings. Photo courtesy of the Illinois State Senate
    Southland manufacturer receives state funding thanks to Hastings Business
  • Stolen merchandise in the arrest of Isadore House by Cook County Sheriff 06-11-25
    Chicago Man Faces Felony after $400,000 in Stolen Merchandise Recovered Chicago
  • Ray Hanania joins Thom Serafin on The Crisis Cast Podcast this week discussing presidential politics, journalism and how to understand Trump's reality TV persona style
    Podcast: Musk vs Trump and the impact of media distortion on news Commentary
  • Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash
    Suburban Chicago Physician Sentenced to Ten Years in Federal Prison for Health Care Fraud Crime
  • Congresswoman Robin Kelly official photo
    Congresswoman and Illinois native Lucy McBath endorse Robin Kelly for U.S. Senate during Gun Violence Prevention Month Crime
  • Orland Fire Protection District responds to fire in Orland Park Thursday Sept. 5, 2024. No injuries
    Orland Fire participates in Village Touch a Truck event June 12 Festival
Store destroyed by looters and arsonists who participated in the Black Lives Matter protests in Chicago at the end of May 2020. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has abandoned victims of looting along with the members of the Chicago Police Department. Photo courtesy Ray Hanania

“Black Friday” and the racism of racism

Posted on December 3, 2020July 13, 2021 By Ray Hanania 2 Comments on “Black Friday” and the racism of racism
SHARE THIS STORY
349           
 
  
349
Shares

“Black Friday” and the racism of racism

Imagine the cries of racism if a “White” Mayor had said that he or she planned to organize a day to promote and help “White owned businesses” survive in today’s economy. But you don’t have to imagine that a Black Mayor, Chicago’s Mayor Lori Lightfoot, would organize a day to help Black Owned businesses, because she did. Singling out and promoting one race is racism and these days all we are seeing is the racism of the racism, a form of racism in which those who claim to be victims are in fact the worst offenders of racism

By Ray Hanania

Can you imagine a White Mayor in a suburb of Chicago putting out a press release to promote “White Shop Friday” that reads:

“Supporting out small businesses has been a priority of mine since even before taking office. This inspiring partnership allows Chicagoans to discover the hundreds of White-owned businesses in our city, driving investment dollars that are needed now more than ever, and giving everyone a chance to make this new shopping holiday a huge success.”

The screams of “racism” would be deafening. I can imagine many African American activists protesting and demanding equal rights, calling for that White Mayor to be fired, and denouncing any group that partners in the “White Shop Friday” program.

Of course, that wouldn’t happen. Most White people know that if they promote their race too much, they will be denounced with an assortment of pejorative nouns.

Store destroyed by looters and arsonists who participated in the Black Lives Matter protests in Chicago at the end of May 2020, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has thrown the victims of looting under theses along with the members of the Chicago Police Department
Store destroyed by looters and arsonists who participated in the Black Lives Matter protests in Chicago at the end of May 2020. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has abandoned victims of looting along with the members of the Chicago Police Department

Yet, no one complained when Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot put out a press release on Nov. 17, just before Thanksgiving, to partner with the Chicago Urban League and other PR firms associated with the mayor to promote “Black Shop Friday” on Nov. 27, which is traditionally described as “Black Friday.”

Mayor Lightfoot said, “Supporting Chicago’s small businesses has been a priority of mine since even before taking office. This inspiring partnership allows Chicagoans to discover the hundreds of Black-owned businesses in our city, driving the investment dollars that are needed now more than ever, and giving everyone a chance to make this new shopping holiday a huge success.”

Is the term “Black Friday” racist? People use the term to describe the day after Thanksgiving, usually a day off of work, as being the traditional start of the Christmas shopping season.

Forget that Christmas isn’t a religious holiday anymore for Christians. It’s an event to put profits in the pockets of business owners.

The term “Black Friday” refers to the use of a positive business phrase. “In the Black” means you have profits, as contrasted to the negative phrase “in the red,” which means you owe money.

There was a “Black Friday” on Sept. 24, 1869 that described the stock market crash that day. Some have argued “Black Friday’s” origins originate from 19th Century slavery sales. I just don’t believe people used the term “Black” to describe African Americans in the 19th Century.

I remember “Black Friday” in the 1970s when I worked at Ford City during high school. The day after Thanksgiving was a big hoped-for sales day, when people, who spent the day before at home around the table eating Turkey dinners, got out of the house to go shopping to get the best deals for Christmas.

I bought my first real computer, an IBM PC Jr., at a warehouse sale near Ford City, organized by Carsons, Pirie Scott, now just simply called Carsons, in 1985.

I wasn’t thinking of race or racism. I wanted a computer.

Mayor Lightfoot has added an unfortunate racist element to “Black Friday” by using the City of Chicago’s powerful resources to promote African American businesses, rather than, say, to promote all small businesses.

There is this ugly double standard in which racism is OK when it is directed against others, especially against White people.

I’m Arab American. I take a pejorative beating from every side, Whites and Blacks, even from Hispanics, and Asians. But we know Mayor Lightfoot doesn’t care about all races.

I would be offended if the mayor declared “Arab Friday,” because I wouldn’t be thinking of her wanting to help Arab owned stores. She didn’t. In May, following the murder of George Floyd in Minnesota, protestors rampaged through Chicagoland looting 12 Arab-owned stores, several of which were burned to the ground.

Instead of helping those Arab American store owners, Mayor Lightfoot ignored them. They were left to recover on their own and tolerate social media racism against them on Facebook and Twitter — social media which, by the way, did not censor racist references to Arab store “fire sales.”

We’re never going to get past racism when officials like Mayor Lightfoot single out one race over all others. Why not call it “Small Business Friday?” Why not speak out about the needs of all the needy?

Well, for one simple reason? Racism is politics in Chicagoland. “Bad politics” when used by one group and “Good politics” when used by another.

That distinction is pretty sad.

You can’t stop racism by being racist. Those who use racism as a shield for everything know that but don’t care.

(Ray Hanania is an award winning former Chicago City Hall reporter and political columnist. This column was originally published in the Southwest News Newspaper Group in the Des Plaines Valley News, Southwest News-Herald, The Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers. For more information on Ray Hanania visit www.Hanania.com or email him at rghanania@gmail.com.)

 

 

Subscribe to Ray Hanania’s Columns

* indicates required field. 

 

Select Email Format


newswire info
  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Ray Hanania
Ray Hanania
Ray Hanania is an award-winning columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.  

His award winning columns can be found at www.HANANIA.COM Subscribe FREE today

Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.

Email Ray Hanania at rghanania@gmail.com.

Follow RayHanania at Twitter
Ray Hanania
Latest posts by Ray Hanania (see all)
  • Summer Smash Festival returns this weekend June 20-22 at SeatGeek - June 18, 2025
  • Orland Park Announces Independence Day Celebration July 3 - June 17, 2025
  • Leving team’s court victory protected dad’s daughters from reported danger - June 14, 2025
  • Tweet

SHARE THIS STORY
349           
 
  
349
Shares
 
349
Shares
 
 
 349         
Blogger, Business, Chicago, Commentary, Cook County, Opinion, Police, Politics, Racism, rayhanania, Suburban Chicagoland Tags:Arab American owned businesses, Arab businesses destroyed, arson, Black owned businesses, Chicago mayor, Coronavirus, COVID-19, hypocrisy, looting, Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Pandemic, Racism, Racist, reverse racism, White owned businesses

Post navigation

Previous Post: Former Jerling teacher sentenced to probation for sexually assaulting two students
Next Post: Geffen/UMe set to release new Mamas and Pappas vinyl album

Related Posts

  • Police Blotter
    Man who broke into Oak Brook home on Thanksgiving arrested Crime
  • Emergency Alert sent by Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot on March 26, 2020 at 7:446 pm to every cell phone customer in Northern Illinois including in the Cook County Suburbs.
    Trump declares Illinois a Major Disaster Area breaking news
  • Controversy-plagued Cook County States Attorney Kim Foxx. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia
    Cook County sets new murder record and Foxx is to blame Blogger
  • Ray Hanania column on fighting extremism and media bias, focusing on Bill Lipinski and John Kass
    The fight against extremism in Illinois Blogger
  • Terrorist Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin who is guilty of massacring civilians in his war against Ukraine. Photo credit Wikipedia
    Statement from Congressman Danny K. Davis on White House Meeting with President Zelensky News
  • Congresswoman Lauren Underwood voting in the U.S. House of Representatives. Photo courtesy of Lauren Underwood
    Underwood supports family tax refunds during shutdown Business

More Related Articles

Cook County Sheriff’s Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the US Marshals Great Lakes Regional Task Force arrested 26-year-old Bradley Pitts wanted for stabbing three people in a Las Vegas hotel parking lot. Mugshot courtesy of Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart Cook County Sheriff Dart says suspect in Las Vegas stabbings apprehended Cook County
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker Gov. Pritzker Advances Vision to Rebuild I-80 construction
Ray Hanania and family Easter 1957. Arab Americans celebrate Thanksgiving Baby Boomers
Graduated state income tax for Illinois makes sense Opinion
Lipinski Hanania podcast Oct 2 2024 on the Vice Presidential Debates between J.D. Vance and Tim Walz. Lipinski and Hanania analyze Vance-Walz VP Debate in video podcast Bill Lipinski
Joe Biden, the 46th President of the United States sworn in on Jan 20, 2021. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia Divided America is a long way from healing and unity Blogger

Comments (2) on ““Black Friday” and the racism of racism”

  1. Pingback: The Driver's Side" – News From The Motorist's Perspective | theexpiredmeter.com
  2. Pingback: “Black Friday” and the racism of racism - BlackBusinessResources.com

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Login with your Social ID
Subscribe to Ray Hanania's column graphic

Enter Your Email to Subscribe to Ray Hanania’s Columns

  • OPINION COLUMNS
  • Attorneys Jeffery Leving Arthur Kallow
    Honoring Fathers: A Father’s Day Reflection
    June 13, 2025
  • Cook County Treasurer Maria Papas
    Understanding Cook County Property Taxes: A Guide for Homeowners
    June 13, 2025
  • 06-04-25 Two Guys on Politics Background Zoom LOGO with images
    Two Guys on Politics Podcast on Elon Musk, Trump’s Parade, LA Riots, and Middle East ban
    June 12, 2025
  • 05-23-25 Jeffery M. Leving
    Often overlooked single fathers deserve praise this Father’s Day
    June 12, 2025
  • Ray Hanania joins Thom Serafin on The Crisis Cast Podcast this week discussing presidential politics, journalism and how to understand Trump's reality TV persona style
    Podcast: Musk vs Trump and the impact of media distortion on news
    June 11, 2025
  • Opinion: Edgar County Watchdogs continue to exaggerate and lie for political union pals
    June 8, 2025
  • NEWS
  • Summer Smash Entertainer lineup 2025
    Summer Smash Festival returns this weekend June 20-22 at SeatGeek
    June 18, 2025
  • Fireworks display for the 4th of July. Photo courtesy of Ray Hanania
    Orland Park Announces Independence Day Celebration July 3
    June 17, 2025
  • The-Kings-Pawn-Book-300-x-300.png
  • SPORTS
  • Chicago Wovles play the Rockford Ice Hogs, Feb. 23, 2025
    Chicago Wolves Hockey skate Past Rockford Icehogs 4 to 2
    February 23, 2025
  • Chicago Wolves player Andrew Poturalski. Photo courtesy of the Chicago Wolves. https://www.chicagowolves.com
    The Chicago Wolves dispatched the Iowa Wild 4-1 on Saturday night at Allstate Arena.
    February 22, 2025
  • NEWS RELEASES
  • 05-23-25 Jeffery M. Leving
    Leving team’s court victory protected dad’s daughters from reported danger
    June 14, 2025
  • Stolen merchandise in the arrest of Isadore House by Cook County Sheriff 06-11-25
    Chicago Man Faces Felony after $400,000 in Stolen Merchandise Recovered
    June 11, 2025
John Kass Columns

Order the book PoweR PR; Ethnic Activists Guide to Strategic Communications

YOUTUBE VIDEOS

CLICK TO SUBSCRIBE TO RAY HANANIA'S YOUTUBE VIDEOS


Click here to view the video on YouTube or use the widget below.

Follow Ray Hanania at
Twitter
Facebook
TitkTok
BlueSky
RayHanania Columns

Creative Commons License
All works on this website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Do not edit original work. Give credit to the original source.

Categories

Copyright © 2022 Suburban Chicagoland & Urban Strategies Group

Powered by PressBook Premium theme