He rides on a white horse over the rooftops with an entourage of cheerful black Piets (zwarte pieten) his helpers.
Every 5th of December he gaves children presents for everybody who was good that year.
The black Piets go through the chimney to place the present in every kids shoe.
Here in Holland we've got an extreme disccussion about the Black Piets the helpers of Nicholas.
They would be racist because they are black and it would come off the slave trade of the past.
But we celebrate it this way for years. And even in Belgium they do not make such a big point of it.
I can not imaging that the helpers will get another colour. If they are white I would feel discriminated, if they are yellow the Chinese people will come that it's a bad thing.
And what would you tell to the children who know that the helpers are black?
They are black because of the chimney.
Black as soot we would say.
But where does the helpers come from really?
Nicholas initially had no helper, but in 1850 Schenkman introduced in his book St. Nicholas and Helper three new cases, all of which have been in a permanent place in the "Sinterklaas"Nicholas folklore: a helper for Nicholas, the arrival and the steamboat. The helper had in his book no name, he was a colored man, dressed as a page. In the course of time he has had several names; For example, he was called John the servant Trappadoeli, Nicodemus, Assiepan, Sabbas, Hans Moef, Pikkie, Robbert, Jack-crack, Micheltje Hansel of Vese (or Hansel from Kese), Jacques Jour (or Sjaak Sjoor).
In 1859 was for the first a printed article in which he is called: Pieter and in 1895 Black Piet was already come into use. It was not just one black Piet, in 1880 there where two helpers. After the Second World War, Canadian soldiers in the Netherlands organized a Nicholas celebration with a mass of Black Piets. Since then Nicholas accompanied by many helpers, nowadays often each one have their own task, led by a host Piet.While Nicholas is always dignified and distinguished, the Piets behave like acrobats and clowns who often make boyish pranks.
There a couple of stories where the Black Piet has his origin from:
- was originally a chimney sweep, and the soot blackened
- would originally have been a demon who was forced by the sacred to do good deeds.
- would an Ethiopian black slave Piter who was ransomed by St. Nicholas in a slave market in Myra
- would be a pre-Christian deity who had to submit to the Christian saint
- would be conquered Satan, deputy to the vanquished Wotan, or his helper Norvi, the black father of the night, who also wore a roe
- be descended from the black ravens Huginn and Muninn, Odin accompanied
- be descended from berserkers, which the body dyed black and wore animal skins
I think he must stay. He's been here with his black colour for years.
He brings presents and joy to people!
What do you think? Is it's racist or not?
