Día del Niño was impossible to miss. Stores have been advertising specials and sales for the past few weeks.
Here are a few flyers I've been given:
35% off (dcto. stands for descuento, or discount) select children's clothes; 30% off toys, shoes, strollers, toy cars, and pajamas; 15% off children's bicycles; and 10% off videogames and videogame accessories.
Día del Niño started as a day celebrating the union of children worldwide, as well as promoting children's protection and rights. The United Nations has recommended that all countries adopt their own Children's Day, but the US hasn't.
Like most holidays, this one is commercialized. Like I said, I have been bombarded with advertisements and sales, so I learned (even without researching) that it's customary to give children gifts today (every second Sunday in August).
This article, from a local Chilean paper, explains how gift-giving on Día del Niño has changed due to the changing nature of children's toys. I'm sure most parents notice this around Christmastime, which is the biggest gift-giving season in the US. Children's interests and wants have changed over the years. They're more interested in technology, and technological gadgets cost a lot more than toys from decades past. Businesses seem to note that as well; notice on the sale flyer that videogames have the smallest discount (10%), because parents will buy them regardless, and those items bring in the largest profit.
The article goes on to discuss the different ways children play nowadays. In 1999, the article says, children were interested in sharing, communicating, and imagining. In 2014, chidlren are interested in creativity, stimulation, and learning. Technology changes every part of society, including little kids, and that's not a bad thing.
19% o the Chilean population is made up of children. To all those children, and to children all over the world, Feliz Día del Niño!
Wow, that's really cool! I had never heard of Children's Day before. Do other countries besides Chile celebrate it?
ReplyDeleteIndeed! It looks like 76 different countries around the world celebrate it, including lots of Latin American countries, like México, Perú, Panamá, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Honduras, Guatemala, Ecuador, Cuba, Colombia, Bolivia, Argentina, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
DeleteSeveral US presidents, governors, and religious leaders have tried to institute a Children's Day in the US, but it's never really taken like it has in other countries. I think it would be neat to start celebrating it, though!
We should celebrate it in. The usa i actually called my nephy today and told him happy childrens day he didnt. Understand but i can tell he was confused lol
ReplyDelete