manny major grocery chains will be closed this Thanksgiving, a โpractice rooted in decades-old Massachusetts โขlaws. Starโ Market, Market Basket, Stop & Shop, Whole Foods, and Trader joe’s are among the stores shuttering their โdoorsโ on the holiday, leaving residents with limited options for last-minute Thanksgiving needs.
These closures aren’t a recent decision; they โstem from Massachusetts’ “blue laws,” originally enacted โขinโค theโ 19th โฃcentury to โขpromote religious observance andโ limit commerce on Sundays and certain holidays. While the laws โhave been significantly relaxed over time, a prohibition on retail sales on Thanksgiving remains inโค affect for many businesses, โคparticularly larger grocery stores. The impact โคis feltโฃ by consumers accustomed to convenience and by the local economy, as online โขshopping โincreasingly captures consumerโค spending. “Increasingly, the consumer is deciding with their feet and dollars right through their smartphone,” said Truman Dickerson, aโข reporter covering the โstory for โ The Boston Globe.โ
The blue laws createโค a disparity, though, as smaller convenience stores and farm standsโข are permitted to operate on Thanksgiving. This has occasionally sparked debate among competitors, though the issue has become less โcontentious in recent years โdue to shifting โconsumer habits. “That raises some consternation ofโ some of their โcompetitors, why they can be open and others can’t,” explained Dickerson.”But again, it hasn’t been as controversial in recent years asโ it usedโข toโ be as โof,โข frankly, changing โฃconsumer patterns.”
The tradition ofโค grocery store closures on Thanksgivingโ reflects โa broader tension between convenience, economic activity, and past regulations in Massachusetts.While some advocateโ for modernizing the blue laws to align withโข contemporary shopping โฃbehaviors, others maintainโ the importance of preserving โa dayโ for family and community, free from the pressures of commercialism.
