Black Pete: Analyzing a Racialized Dutch Tradition Through the History of Western Creations of Stere

Dutch society, and therefore Dutch people, takes much prides in being extremely tolerant and anti-racist. Their history proves it; their open policies demonstrate it. Yet there is a huge discrepancy between what is claimed by society in general, and what many minorities experience. The traditional Dutch celebration of Santa Clause, “Sinterklaas” in Dutch, is an example of such a discrepancy. The character of Black Pete, “Zwarte Piet,” in the Sinterklaas holiday has been a very controversial issue in The Netherlands. Many believe the depiction of Black Pete is racist. This article will look at the historical origins of some of the most standard stereotypes pitted against black people by Europe and the United States, and use them as a foundation for analyzing the portrayal of Black Pete and the controversy surrounding it.

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https://www.humanityinaction.org/knowledgebase/255-black-pete-analyzing-a-racialized-dutch-tradition-through-the-history-of-western-creations-of-stereotypes-of-black-peoples

took on the role of the enemy of Europe as a whole, replacing the European elite as the enemies of the under-class.