Twitter erupts into Thanksgiving cover charge argument
In a trend that some are suggesting contradicts the entire point of Thanksgiving, it seems that more and more families are charging for entry fee to Thanksgiving dinner, sometimes up to $30.
In a tweet that triggered a viral argument over paying for a plate of food at your family’s for Thanksgiving, one person tweeted that Thanksgiving at her aunt’s costs her $30, a fee that acts as an insurance that you will show up to dinner. @beetaylora, who tweeted that her aunt charges would-be Thanksgiving eaters €25, defended the cover charge by stating, “if you pay $30 for a plate then you are ensuring that you’re actually going to show up and food isn’t being wasted.”
Other Twitter whose families require a cover charge to pay for Thanksgiving entry also gave understandable reasons, including the financial pressure on the host to cover the cost of the entire meal, especially if they do not receive financial help prior to the meal, or if the host cooks the entire meal by themselves, instead of receiving help in the form of a pot-luck style dinner.
But for many, the idea of paying to join your own family for Thanksgiving seems outrageous, with some laughing at the idea of paying their own grandmother for a Thanksgiving plate, and others suggesting paying for a plate defeats the purpose of the holiday. Thanksgiving, which is traditionally considered a time for families to gather together, eat outrageous amounts of food, and discuss what they are thankful for, should also be free according to many Twitter users.
Others who joined in on the conversation wanted to know exactly how much food $30 comes out to, which is actually a fair question - because $30 does seem like a pretty steep price to pay for just one plate of home-cooked food.
@TheRealDaytime about paying for a plate for Thanksgiving? I wonder how many plates do you get. I am not paying $30 for one plate.
— R&BJunky4Life (@sirsteele) November 22, 2017
Some tweeters compared the practice to paying a cover charge at the club and were curious whether the cost covered such amenities as re-entry, and if there were VIP specials involved.
Is there a Thanksgiving re-entry fee if you and your cousins “take a walk” after dinner? I️ need to know.
— No Relation, Esq. (@TheCosby) November 1, 2017
I am willing to pay $50 for a VIP ticket to Thanksgiving dinner.
— Tiffany (@theartbxtch) November 1, 2017
Overall, the majority of Twitter seemed to be overwhelmingly against paying for Thanksgiving dinner despite the pretty valid reasons behind the cover charge.
We've one final question, though: how much are leftovers?
