A Dutch perspective on Zwarte Piet (Black Pete)

Cultural artifact or racist stereotype?

In the Netherlands, we celebrate the feast of Sinterklaas, an annual festive period primarily focused on children. Variations of the holiday exist in Belgium, former Dutch territories, and some other European regions.

The figure of Sinterklaas is based on Saint Nicholas (270–343), bishop of Myra and patron saint of children. Serving as the inspiration for the North American Santa Claus, it should be no surprise that the celebration involves gifts and (sweet) delicacies.

As we are closing in on this year’s highlight of the celebration, St. Nicholas Eve (December 5), it seems like a good time to address the controversy surrounding the depiction of his helper.

Since the early 2010s, the appearance of Zwarte Piet (Black Pete) has led to yearly debates and demonstrations surrounding the holiday.

To better understand this, we look at the history of the character and the main arguments for and against the tradition, as well as the way forward.

The History of Piet

Though Sinterklaas traditions date back to the Middle Ages, he did not seem to have a regular assistant until the 19th century. In some depictions, he would judge the behavior of children and was even shown as a black boogeyman.

A picture book from 1850, by Jan Schenkman, is credited with introducing several elements still seen in the celebration today: Sinterklaas and his unnamed dark-skinned helper arrive on a steamboat from Spain to a festive reception. While in the country, they travel the rooftops at night to leave gifts and sweets for the children.

Throughout the rest of the 19th century, the character of the helper (Piet) becomes more defined; he gets his name and starts wearing a Renaissance costume, likely reminiscent of 16th-century Spanish servants. Sinterklaas also starts showing up with more than one helper.

From early on, there are various origin stories regarding Piet’s skin color. These range from Piet being a dark-skinned servant or even a freed slave, resembling old depictions of Moors, to the story that he is dark because of the soot in all the chimneys he passes through.

Until the middle of the 20th century, Piet is seen with a bundle of wooden sticks to deal out punishment to bad children. That aspect was transferred from the Medieval character of Sinterklaas to his assistant.

After the 1950s, the intimidation of children fell out of favor and Piet became a friendly and mischievous character.

What stayed consistent, until the early 2010s, is that Piet was usually portrayed by white people wearing make-up to blacken their skin. By contrast, in former Dutch colonies, where the typical skin color is dark, only the actor playing Sinterklaas would use make-up, to whiten their skin.

It is the exaggerated visual aspect of the character of Zwarte Piet that is controversial: the make-up is associated with blackface and racist stereotyping. This is exacerbated by the common combination of a curly wig, exaggerated red lips, and big earrings.

My Perspective

Since the early 2010s the debate in the Netherlands has been particularly fierce.

It’s unfortunately overshadowed by the extremes; people who believe everyone who celebrates Sinterklaas is racist on the one hand, and people who believe no change to traditions is allowed on the other hand.

The latter group unfortunately also attracts actual racist groups, and both sides are willing to hold demonstrations and use violence, at the expense of the children who just want to have a celebration.

I grew up in the 1990s, well before any significant debate surrounding the appearance of Zwarte Piet. What sets me apart a bit, is that at age 6 I was relatively early in knowing Sinterklaas and Piet did not really exist, while my classmates still believed they did.

The prevailing story was that Piet got his skin color from soot in the chimneys, and I never associated either Sinterklaas or Piet with real people or particular looks. Their clothing is from times long past and Sinterklaas himself also looks exaggerated with his long white beard.

As an adult, I can see that the “soot story” doesn’t quite hold water with certain traditional aspects of the look of Zwarte Piet. I believe that, for better or for worse, it never crossed the mind of the great majority of (the mostly white) people who celebrate Sinterklaas to question it.

The representation is not intended to be racist or hurtful on purpose, but at the same time lacks sensitivity in a modern society with people from various cultures and backgrounds.

Both extremes are therefore wrong; you should expect a knee-jerk reaction if you call an entire population racist over a holiday they have fond childhood memories of, but, on the flip side, you should have tolerance and sensitivity in a changing society.

The Way Forward

In 2015, a United Nations report mentioned that the Dutch government should make changes. Back then it seemed meddlesome, but a change is probably the best way forward.

We should not change cultural aspects for every complaint, but it has been established that a significant group is bothered by what is supposed to be a celebration for the whole country to enjoy.

Furthermore, the argument that a tradition cannot change is nonsense; when you zoom out a little, you see that the Sinterklaas tradition has already changed multiple times, and Piet himself is a relatively recent addition.

In a more practical sense, children do not care what color Piet is. His appearance is not a fundamental part of the experience, and his behavior was already modernized a long time ago. At worst, some songs and merchandise will need to be updated.

On a humane level, it seems like a small effort in the grand scheme of things to make a few changes that stop the holiday from being hurtful to anyone. Throughout the years, quite a few attempts have already been made with little consequence.

Popular opinion is starting to shift in any case; whereas in 2014 a majority was in favor of keeping the look of Zwarte Piet the same, as of recent years the majority is open to making adjustments.

I will say that the execution still leaves a bit to be desired, and some experiments had unfortunate results. Try Googling “stroopwafelpiet” and “kaaspiet”, for example, their skin was made to resemble waffles and cheese respectively.

I personally have a preference for aligning the design with the origin story of the chimneys, which is still a traditional one. Variations low on makeup do run the risk of actors being too recognizable for children, so we shouldn’t be stingy with the soot.

The black face paint and exaggerated lips, however, we can do without in 2023.