Sinterklaasavond

[bcholmes]

the_siobhan and I are making plans to go to alt.polycon in the Netherlands next May. I loved the Netherlands, and I've always wanted to return there. The Netherlands also has a special relationship with Canada, partially because Canadians were involved in liberating the Netherlands during WWII, and partially because we provided refuge to the Dutch royal family (there's a hospital room in Ottawa that was declared "outside of Canada" so that Princess Margriet wouldn't be born in a non-Dutch country. So, y'know, as a Canadian, I found the Dutch very welcoming.

But as much as I loved the Netherlands, some elements strike me as very foreign.

Someone on my friends list reminded me that last night/this morning is Sinterklaas. I remember wandering the streets of Amsterdam, seeing Sinterklaas in shopping districts like Kalverstraat, much like we see Santa in shopping malls. But in the Netherlands, Sinterklaas is accompanied, not by elves, but by Zwarte Piet -- usually a man in blackface. That was a little bit eyebrow-raising.

Wikipedia says:

During recent years the role of Zwarte Piet has become part of a recurring debate in the Netherlands. To this day, holiday revellers in the Netherlands blacken their faces, wear afro wigs and bright red lipstick, and walk the streets throwing candy to passers-by.

Accepted in the past without controversy in a once largely ethnically homogeneous nation, today Zwarte Piet is somewhat controversial and greeted with mixed reactions. Many see him as a cherished tradition and look forward to his annual appearance. Others detest him -- for example, people overseas, based on the history of slavery and blackface.

I know that the Netherlands doesn't have the same history with blackface as here in North America (and, well, mostly in the States). But my first experience with Zwarte Piet was one of those moments where I was reminded that I wasn't in my native country.