Buy Nothing Day (BND) is an international day of protest against consumerism. The first Buy Nothing Day was organized in Mexico in September 1992 as a day for society to examine the issue of over-consumption. This year BND is Nov 25 in North America. Nov 26: World Wide. More than 65 countries participate. As the UK group says, "Lock up your wallets and purses, cut up your credit cards and dump the love of your life - shopping."
Like Move Your Money Day last week BND is a tool, of individual empowerment. They are a lever poised to lift the veil of consumerism one x-zombie at a time. Adbusters has for years promoted BND and now the occopiers are coming on board. It's depressing to watch the hords lined up to stampede the malls on Black Friday in the US and during the consumer season generally. The newest video game or smartphone, the shiniest bobble, still draws the zombie hordes. The awakening is spreading, slowly.
The corporations, the 1%, live on the excesses-the wants not the needs-of the rest of us. Without the endless demands of consumers the veil would drop and the bonerack that seems, like the Wizard of Oz, so powerful would be exposed as the teetering lie it is. We are the consumers, we are opening our eyes, despite the hordes at the malls gobbling up needless crap-we are winning [i hope].
