For fuck’s sake, now that the United Nations has decided to investigate whether or not the current celebration of St. Nicholas is racist the apologists and socially conservatives have gone absolutely nuts. The responses have been shockingly racist, callous and surprisingly dim-witted. There are quite a few people on both sides of the argument who are more willingly to discuss it more rationally, but they are a minority compared to the screaming idiots who are just belching racist comment after racist comment, while at the same time claiming they’re “not racist, but…”
The world is watching the Netherlands in the same way they watched South Africa in the 80’s. Sure, the charge is certainly not of the same magnitude, but the unwillingness to even consider that the criticism is fair, that the “tradition” needs revising, is emberrassing.
Tradition. Yeah, to everyone claiming that this tradition has been around for hundreds of years, no, it hasn’t. Jan Schenkman introduced the concept of zwarte Piet in 1850, and it probably took a while before that addition was institutionalised the way it has. There are many traditions that are considered destructive and are in desperate need for revision, like female circumcision, for instance.
The Dutch don’t mind judging what’s right and wrong for other people, but we have shown ourselves to have a shocking lack of self-reflection as we are stubbornly holding on to something that, in the grand scheme of things, isn’t so important. And I’m not talking about the St. Nicholas celebration — which a lot of people are claiming is at stake — but the inclusion of his black helper, zwarte Piet.
So no, I don’t subscribe to the idea that other people don’t have the right to tell us which of our traditions are racist. Sometimes you need an outsider to show you what you’re doing wrong because you’re to set in your ways to realise that you’re callous or racist.
No, I don’t believe that removing zwarte Piet from the equation is just a sad attempt to placate a vocal minority. The reason why this conversation is becoming louder each year is because there are more people who are willing to come forward and say that it’s bothering them. I’m not surprised they have remained quiet for so long if this is the response that awaits them whenever they bring it up.
No, I don’t agree that the objection against zwarte Piet is a slippery slope that will lead to other frivolous objections. If your counter-argument is that people will find something new to be offended by if you give in to this, you’re trying to deflect the argument usually by comparing it to something far more absurd.
No, I don’t agree that just because in your heart you are not racist you can keep upholding a tradition with a strongly racist charge. Yes, I realise that for the overwhelming majority of the people that have celebrated and continue to celebrate St. Nicholas (myself included for a long time), the celebration has nothing to do with racism, classism, segregation, seperatism, ridiculisation or discrimination — and it’s likely why most people feel so knee-jerky about it, because they truly never realised and are having a hard time coming to terms with it — but that’s not enough of a reason to just continue doing it. Ignorance, as with many things, isn’t an excuse to continue bad behaviour, especially now that ignorance is being lifted.
Anyway, I could go on, but I won’t. I am mostly jotting this down for my own benefit in order to get this off my chest than to inform the two or three people that actually read my journal.
Nederland Spreekt is a downright scary collection of posts made online by Dutch people that truly floor and terrify me.
