A grass-roots campaign is urging Americans to participate in an “economic blackout” on Feb. 28 by avoiding big-box retailers for 24 hours. The protest comes in the wake of widespread frustration over inflation, skyrocketing prices for necessities like gas and groceries, and what organizers call unbridled corporate greed. The campaign is part of a wider movement of economic activism, with campaigns like the “No Buy 2025” challenge attempting to cut out unnecessary consumption.
The boycott has also caught on across social media platforms, with campaigners calling for a temporary stoppage in consumer purchases to register their disapproval to businesses and policymakers. But who is leading the movement, and what does it seek to achieve in the long term? Here is everything you need to know.
Who is organizing the economic blackout?
The Feb. 28 boycott is led by the People’s Union USA, a grassroots movement pushing for economic resistance, corporate reform, and government accountability. Started by John Schwarz, the organization bills itself as nonpartisan, seeking to bring Americans together against systemic economic issues.
The People’s Union website said the blackout aims to call attention to issues such as price gouging, loopholes for corporations to avoid taxes, and inequality of income. “For decades, we’ve been told we have no other choice but to just take these rising costs, corporate profiteering, and billionaire tax handouts while scraping by barely able to make ends meet,” Schwarz wrote in an Instagram post.
The campaign has been endorsed by big-name figures, including actor John Leguizamo, author Stephen King, and singer Bette Midler. Their support has helped to boost the message of the boycott, urging Americans to stay away from spending money at big-box retailers online and in stores on Feb. 28.
What are the goals of the boycott?
Schwarz and People’s Union believe that by shutting down consumer spending, even if only for a day, it will show the power of collective action. The movement is calling on citizens to boycott shopping in large corporations such as Amazon, Walmart, and fast food chains in an attempt to stop the continuous stream of economic activity.
“For a day, we shut down the economy. We close it down. We remind them this country does not belong to the elite; it belongs to the people,” Schwarz said. The idea is to make a dramatic statement that unchecked business activity and rising consumer spending are unsustainable.
Though the boycott calls for avoiding excessive spending, necessary shopping—medicine, groceries, and emergency purchases—should be done from local small-scale businesses instead of box stores. Schwarz and other organizers explain that the protest is not aimed at hurting the economy but at demonstrating the economic strength of ordinary Americans.
What happens after Feb. 28?
The Feb. 28 boycott is just the beginning, according to the People’s Union. Schwarz reports that the organization has plans for weeklong boycotts of specific corporations, including Amazon, Target, and Walmart, which they claim are among the biggest perpetrators of exploitative business practices.
Other activist groups are also calling for long-term economic action against firms that have dismantled diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives following policy changes under the Trump administration. Minnesota civil rights activists, for example, have called for a sustained boycott of Target after the chain reduced DEI commitments, something they assert is a betrayal of previous work to build inclusive workplaces.
Other boycotts gaining momentum are the “Target Fast,” a Lenten boycott of shopping at Target, and the Latino Freeze Movement, which urges Latino consumers to strategically shop at businesses that share their values. Other companies such as Coca-Cola, Nestlé, and other major corporations, have also been targeted as possible future targets of economic activism.
Though it is yet to be seen how much traction the Feb. 28 blackout will gain, organizers hope that if a sufficient number of people take part, corporations and lawmakers will be made to pay attention. Whether or not this movement will translate into large-scale economic changes or policy reform remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the debate regarding corporate accountability and economic justice has only just begun.
