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White Innocence: Paradoxes of Colonialism and Race
Duke University Press
Copyright:
This content is made freely available by the publisher. It may not be redistributed or altered. All rights reserved.
ISBN electronic:
978-0-8223-7456-5
Publication date:
2016
Book Chapter
“… For Even Though I Am Black as Soot, My Intentions Are Good”: The Case of Zwarte Piet/Black Pete
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Published:April 2016
The most beloved folkloric figure in the Netherlands is Zwarte Piet/Black Pete, a blackface, silly man or woman, wielding ungrammatical “dumbspeak,” who comes with his boss, Sinterklaas, a white bishop, from Spain every year to bring presents to children. Although black people have protested against the racism inherent in this figure for four decades, it is only in the last four years, under the influence of international attention, that it has become a pressing social issue, dividing black and white people. The vehement and aggressive reactions from the white public, which overwhelmingly defends Zwarte Piet, display entitlement racism. Innocence, smallness,...
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