With A Little Help From My Friends

There's nothing wrong with "Friendsgiving"

When my parents were over for Thanksgiving—we hosted, for the first time ever—I mentioned that some right-wingers make fun of “Friendsgiving,” or the trend of young people having dinner parties/potlucks instead of (or often in addition to) traveling home. My dad knew what I was talking about, and he said, “Oh yeah, that guy [Greg Kelley? Jesse Watters? I don’t remember] was talking about that. It’s dumb.”

I can’t actually find one of these tirades now—so maybe I’m magnifying an inconsequential little opinion—but I know I’ve heard it, and it’s one of those things, like Laura Ingraham arguing that motorists have a constitutional right to speed, or Jesse Watters (yes, actually him) telling people not to wear masks during an air quality alert, that truly jumps the shark.

I think the anti-Friendsgiving argument goes something like, “Young people just want to move to a handful of trendy cities, work stupid jobs with their gender studies degrees, get a dog, forego marriage and kids, and act like college students for the rest of their lives.” Look—I think getting married and having kids is a good thing. Staying close to your family is nice. But there’s a myopia here. People have been leaving their hometowns and striking out looking for opportunity forever. The idea that any of this has a moral valence to it is kind of silly.

Plus, as you’ll know from reading this newsletter, housing is incredibly expensive (as is education). These prices have trended up far above the rate of inflation. It’s genuinely very difficult to follow the trajectory of your parents today, if you’re a middle/upper-middle-class young person. If you’re not? Even harder.