"Sinterklaas & Zwarte Piet (black face)" Racism & Slavery

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I do not deny the system, I do not deny the names the system gives itself.

I deny that they are countries, they are occupying powers, they occupy the country planet-earth.

One of my musical heroes is singer songwriter Paul Simon, he made a beautiful song about the nature similarities between all people on planet earth. That song is called "Cars are Cars", kind of like John Lennon's song "imagine" but in a more metaphorical form.

As far as the subject of this thread is concerned, all in all there have been fewer Sinterklaas parades with Zwarte Piet this year, there is still progress

The Netherlands 'occupied' the Dutch East Indies (now called 'Indonesia') as an alien colonial oppressor for a hundred some years.

But the Netherlands doesnt 'occupy' itself.

So its fair to brand the Netherlands as a bad 'occupying power' when you're talking about Indonesia prior to Indonesia's independence (or brand the UK that way when talking about Egypt, India, Ireland, or colonial America under British rule or whatever).

But its stupid to talk about the Netherlands as an occupying power when you're talking about the Netherlands itself.

If you dont want your country of the Netherland to be "a country" then what DO you want the Netherlands to be? What exactly is this other thing you want it to be?

Both John Lennon, and Paul Simon, would probably kick your ass for talking like an idiot- and for making both of them look stupid.

Not only Sinterklaas' personnel policy is controversial. The tradition also scares children, if they have not been good last year, Sinterklaas puts them in a bag and takes the naughty children with his boat to the home from Sinterklaas.