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Campus Talk: is Black Pete racist?

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For international students it isn’t an annual tradition yet that they look forward to: the discussion about Black Pete, Sinterklaas’ helper who’s frequently referred as the blackface. In the countries where the students come from, the term ‘blackface’ is often utterly taboo. How do the internationals view our national divisive Black Pete? Watch the video.

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As one of the most progressive nations on Earth regarding homosexuality, gender equality and human rights, the Netherlands is probably the last country you’d expect to be called out on racism. Especially when the controversy is mainly focused around a children’s festivity.

Sinterklaas is the Dutch equivalent of the American Santa Claus who brings presents to children who have behaved themselves over the past year. Both bring joy to the world, but Sinterklaas has a helper who might cause you to raise your eyebrows: Black Pete. Dutchmen use blackface and dress up in colourful clothes to play Black Pete, the jolly and naughty child friend.

While Dutch children learn that Pete’s face is black because of soot from the chimney he has to climb down in order to deliver presents, this explanation can’t account for the red lips and frizzy hair. The association between the painful Dutch colonial history and blackface tradition is evident to most of the Dutch descendants of Africans and rising numbers of Dutchmen are in favor of a change of the tradition. Even so, the tradition is rooted in Dutch culture and many want it to stay that way.

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  1. Nandini op 2 December 2018 om 18:25

    This is extremely sad. How can people be so ignorant and delusional thinking that Zwarte Piet is black just because he goes down the Chimney to deliver presents! As it was questioned before- How would you answer him wearing a red lipstick and having black curly hair then? Well, you all say that children don’t notice racism, but this is the starting point for them to distinguish the whites from the black! Kids will psychologically relate other African heritage people to Zwarte Piet just because of his colour! The other point to notice here is- Zwarte Piet being a helper of santa. Now, doesn’t this again show marks of slavery? Santa being the white master and Zwarte Piet being the slave who helps him. Being an international student, I was extremely furious when I heard about this tradition. If the Dutch still think that this is normal and not offensive, well they are being mean and ignorant. They are hurting the feelings of those who are being targeted, they are not respecting others’ feelings and individuality. My boyfriend is from African heritage and he feels sad seeing how people can even support this tradition. It makes him uncomfortable and angry too when he sees posters of Zwarte Piet around the city. I am glad Erasmus is giving us an opportunity to tell our views about Zwarte Piet.. And I would appreciate if everyone for once would get out of their dreamy dilusional world and see how offensive can this tradition be.

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