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Santa's Black-Faced Helpers Are Under Fire In The Netherlands
Code Switch
December 01, 2014
By Eleanor Beardsley
Excerpt:
For an American, watching a Sinterklaas parade, like the one I recently went to in Amsterdam, can be a bit of a shock. Because dancing around the dear old Dutch Santa are his helpers, known as Swarte Piete, or Black Pete.
And Black Pete is played by scores of white people dressed up in black face ... and wearing Afro wigs.
In the past few years, Black Pete has come under fire. A beloved tradition for some, others say he is a racist stereotype. And the increasingly rancorous debate over Black Pete has gripped the Netherlands.
....
But others, like Raimund Larat, 23, who is black, see it differently. Larat, whose parents emigrated to Holland from the former Dutch colony of Suriname in South America, says people called him Black Pete when he was young and he took it as an insult.
"We feel hurt by the tradition that they call a tradition," says Larat. "There are a lot of people that don't agree with the way this holiday is celebrated. And there is something that has to change."
Larat says Sinterklaas is fine, but Black Pete must go.
"We need to find a Christmas character that everyone can identify with and be joyful about," he says.
...
There are different views on the history of Black Pete. Some say he goes back centuries, and is dark because he once represented the devil. Others say Black Pete depicts an African slave subservient to Sinterklaas. Still others say Black Pete is only sooty from sliding down chimneys.
But everyone agrees that the playful, bumbling Black Pete character celebrated today was popularized in a 19th-century Dutch children's story. According to tradition, Sinterklaas and his Black Pete helpers arrive every November by boat from Spain, bringing presents and candy for every Dutch girl and boy. And they're welcomed in celebrations across the Netherlands.
...
A Court Passes On The Question
This month, the Netherlands' highest court refused to wade into the battle over Black Pete. Pam Evenhuis, head of Amsterdam's Sinterklaas parade committee, says that was the right decision. Society should work it out.
"The Netherlands is a country where change goes gradually," says Evenhuis. "We're not changing from one day to the next. We don't have a supreme court that will make far-reaching decisions. Here, we have what we call a dialogue culture."
....
Read more at:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/...he-netherlands
Code Switch
December 01, 2014
By Eleanor Beardsley
Excerpt:
For an American, watching a Sinterklaas parade, like the one I recently went to in Amsterdam, can be a bit of a shock. Because dancing around the dear old Dutch Santa are his helpers, known as Swarte Piete, or Black Pete.
And Black Pete is played by scores of white people dressed up in black face ... and wearing Afro wigs.
In the past few years, Black Pete has come under fire. A beloved tradition for some, others say he is a racist stereotype. And the increasingly rancorous debate over Black Pete has gripped the Netherlands.
....
But others, like Raimund Larat, 23, who is black, see it differently. Larat, whose parents emigrated to Holland from the former Dutch colony of Suriname in South America, says people called him Black Pete when he was young and he took it as an insult.
"We feel hurt by the tradition that they call a tradition," says Larat. "There are a lot of people that don't agree with the way this holiday is celebrated. And there is something that has to change."
Larat says Sinterklaas is fine, but Black Pete must go.
"We need to find a Christmas character that everyone can identify with and be joyful about," he says.
...
There are different views on the history of Black Pete. Some say he goes back centuries, and is dark because he once represented the devil. Others say Black Pete depicts an African slave subservient to Sinterklaas. Still others say Black Pete is only sooty from sliding down chimneys.
But everyone agrees that the playful, bumbling Black Pete character celebrated today was popularized in a 19th-century Dutch children's story. According to tradition, Sinterklaas and his Black Pete helpers arrive every November by boat from Spain, bringing presents and candy for every Dutch girl and boy. And they're welcomed in celebrations across the Netherlands.
...
A Court Passes On The Question
This month, the Netherlands' highest court refused to wade into the battle over Black Pete. Pam Evenhuis, head of Amsterdam's Sinterklaas parade committee, says that was the right decision. Society should work it out.
"The Netherlands is a country where change goes gradually," says Evenhuis. "We're not changing from one day to the next. We don't have a supreme court that will make far-reaching decisions. Here, we have what we call a dialogue culture."
....
Read more at:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/...he-netherlands