Radio Chthulucene 87.9 FM

content warning: discussions of racism and blackface

Although I felt that the general meanings of LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs’ poems were lost on me, I became obsessed with the references she made. While my favorite reference was to djinns— which are creatures from Arabic and Islamic folklore who reside in parallel universes on the same Earth, made from “smokeless fire,” and often wreak havoc (and no, it’s not like the genie from Aladdin)— I find it essential to discuss Zwarte Piet. Diggs mentions this “tradition” in two separate poems, “mista popo™ hollas@ Jynx™” and “who you callin’ a jynx.”

Context: From the years 2015 to 2018, my family lived in Amsterdam. I was born in Azerbaijan and had been living in California prior to this move. At eleven years old, I had some understanding of racism, but nothing could have prepared me for the systemic and cultural racism present in the Netherlands. One of these Dutch traditions includes Sinterklaas. Every December 6th, in which Saint Nicholas is celebrated for being a patron for children, thousands of white people in the Netherlands paint their skin black, put on a curly wig, and parade around the city in celebration of this holiday.

“Zwarte” translates to black in English from Dutch. The caricature of Zwarte Piet (Black Pete) is understood as a “worker” for Sint Nicolaas as he carries the presents the saint gives out to children, leads the horse, and basically does all the work while the saint gets all the credit.

I have heard every excuse in the book on this subject: Piet was just a servant and not enslaved, there were so many black and white servants back then; it’s just a part of our culture, you are being racist to Dutch people by saying blackface is racist; we are actually celebrating black people by doing this.

There are so many things I can say on this topic, but as we’re on the subject of translanguaging and codeswitching, I want to dissect the Dutch language around Zwarte Piet. Piet is understood only through his blackness by the label he is given: zwarte. He is never referred to as Piet; the zwarte is always there, looming before his name. However, it would be unnatural to refer to the saint as Witte Sint Nicolaas (witte meaning white in Dutch). This use of language exemplifies the centering of whiteness in the Dutch culture and labeling those who are black as the “other.”

Ultimately, racism under the guise of “humor” runs rampant during the weeks surrounding Sinterklaas. Traditions such as poems and gifts— which are frequently implemented in Dutch classrooms— often revolve around racial othering for children of color.

(to be continued…)