For centuries, Zwarte Piet, or Black Pete, is known traditionally in the Netherlands as Santa Claus’s dark skinned servant and every year many Dutch people celebrate by painting their faces black and parading. Last month, the UN Commissioner for Human Rights Verene Shepherd expressed her concern about the tradition’s racist connotations and called an investigation into whether it has a violent consequences. Writer Flavia Dzodan joined the AMp’s Molly Adams and WBEZ’s Michael Puente this morning by phone all the way from Amsterdam to talk about the history of this tradition and the changing face of Europe.
If you want to listen to me talking, here’s your chance!
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