The Fight Over 'Black Pete' Brings a Reckoning on Racial Equality in the Netherlands

Press/Media: Expert Comment

Period14 Nov 2020

Media contributions

1

Media contributions

  • TitleThe Fight Over 'Black Pete' Brings a Reckoning on Racial Equality in the Netherlands
    Degree of recognitionInternational
    Media name/outletTIME Magazine
    Media typePrint
    Country/TerritoryUnited States
    Date14/11/20
    DescriptionAfter more than a decade of work by local anti-racism activists, and a summer during which the Black Lives Matter movement in the U.S. reverberated around the world, the Netherlands is finally rethinking its dedication to Black Pete.
    The fight over Black Pete has exposed a deep rift in Dutch society—between those who see glaring inequalities for the country’s minority population, and those who believe firmly that their tolerant and liberal society offers equality to all. “It all boils down to the image that this country has—we are one of the happiest countries in the world —and I’m like, who are you asking?” says Jerry Afriyie, a poet, activist, and a leading figure behind the “Kick Out Zwarte Piet” campaign. “If you go to the Black community and do the same research, you are going to find something different.”
    Producer/AuthorCharlotte McDonald-Gibson
    URLhttps://time.com/5910949/black-pete-netherlands-zwarte-piet/
    PersonsMaurice Crul