Black Santa is back from a year off after the COVID shutdown sidelined him — and to be honest, dampened my Christmas spirit.
Last Christmas, I just couldn’t bring myself to put any of my nearly 300 Black Santas on display in my office in the GBH newsroom, where just a few of my colleagues and I were regularly working in the building. I also wasn’t moved to put out any of my favorites at home, even though there’s nothing like seeing a tiny Santa tucked in on my bookshelf, or having my Mr. and Mrs. Black Santa Claus salt and pepper shakers poised on my dining room table, or positioning my nearly life-sized Santas to stand sentry by my mantel. But as much as I missed seeing them throughout the house, I just couldn’t muster the energy to put them in their usual spaces. It somehow didn’t feel right.
You may have thought that my not displaying them would cool my enthusiasm for collecting more. Nope, not even a little bit. I never paused my ongoing year-round search for new Black Santas and in fact, ramped up my mission to finding ones wearing a face mask, the accessory symbolic of the pandemic times.
Since I was avoiding spending a lot of time inside stores, I immersed myself into what was, at first, casual online searches. But once I found my mask-wearing Black Santas, I was in the thick of a full-on hunt for others with unique details. My efforts turned up Santas who represented the full spectrum of Black Santa-ness — mocha, ebony, cafe au lait and chocolate versions of the jolly old Saint Nick I’ve come to love. And slowly this year, despite the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic, I found myself preparing them for a 2021 debut.
But apparently, I’m not the only one who was missing Black Santa. They’ve been popping up all over this season in several high-profile scenarios. Oreo’s holiday-themed TV ad showcases a Black Kris Kringle who eats Oreos dunked in milk to amp up his famous “Ho, Ho, Ho.” Kids and families enjoying a trip to California’s Disneyland and Florida’s Walt Disney World may have been surprised to see a Black Santa as part of the merry band of red-suited brothers on hand to delight park visitors. CNN reported that Disney made no announcement about the inclusion but responded to inquiries saying the company sought to reflect residents of the surrounding communities. Social media commentary took off once Disney’s Black Santas were spotted — not all of it positive. But Victoria Wade, an African American social media influencer specializing in theme parks, told CNN, “I’m thrilled about what this will do for children of all backgrounds when they visit Disney parks.” Black Santa is also the star of a TV commercial promoting Etsy, the American e-commerce company that showcases craft artists. In the ad, a little Black boy, his dad and Grandpa stand in line to see the mall Santa — who is white, as most are. As Grandpa waits, he is taken with multiple images of white Santas. Cut to the final scene where the family is at home exchanging presents. The little boy happily gifts his Grandpa with a handcrafted Christmas stocking, stitched with a smiling Black Santa.
It’s heartwarming to see more Black Santas in the mix. Representation matters, especially when it comes to popular cultural icons like the fictional Saint Nicholas. Though Santa’s appeal has always been universal, children of color find comfort in seeing Black Santas — or, for that matter, the few Asian and Latino Santas I’ve heard about in my Black Santa quests.
It’s challenging to find holiday happiness while living in the shadow of a global health crisis. But vaccine protection allows for a careful, if cautious, reintegration of our lives and traditions. So even though I’m not yet ready for a return to my over-the-top Black Santa wonderland, I am ready to spread a little Black Santa merriment. And anyway, even a few Black Santas make everything better in a season celebrating joy. Merry Christmas!
