We all know about the beloved mystical figure of Santa Claus. He arrives every Christmas eve, riding in his sleigh, drawn by the twelve elves to distribute toys to the children (of all colors) around the world. The famous red suit wearing Santa, with a hat, black boots, and belts has a big bag filled with toys to give to children all over the world. He gets in his sleigh which is traditionally pulled in by nine flying reindeer. Big “fat” Santa with a big belly takes the trouble of getting himself squeezed as he goes down the chimney. His mission is to make sure that every child of Christian faith has a new toy to open on Christmas morning. He supposedly put a toy in each child’s stocking with their names engraved on it that is hung by their parents on the mantle of the fireplace. He never forgets to eat the cookies and a cold glass of milk that is set up for him at a corner table. At this point, where is Mrs. Claus? Well, she is at home in the North Pole, exhausted from wrapping all the presents with the help of the elves. She is just having some downtime and awaiting her husband’s return after he is done with giving out toys. What does the couple look like? What ethnicity do they belong to? Of course they are white Caucasians! What is wrong with that? Nothing, except the Santa couple now has gone biracial to represent diverse ethnicity. Wow! What a grand idea to become politically correct in this millennium.
To sponsor the idea of a black Mrs. Claus, US’ most popular drugstore conglomerate CVS has joined the band wagon. From October on, they were displaying a white Mr. Claus and a black Mrs. Claus on two sides of the candy aisle. I discovered the couple when I went to get Halloween candy for my neighborhood kids. I paused and took a couple of snapshots. People were giving me curious looks (not disapprovingly) and a couple of people waited until I was done taking two shots. They were polite enough not to pass through by blocking my view. It was done in good humor for all concerned. I kind of forgot that I had taken the pictures (as I take a lot of pictures) until last night.
Interestingly, CVS is not alone in portraying a black Mrs. Claus as a display. I recently saw an article by US based MSNBC.com a story about how across the Atlantic UK’s mega drugstore chain Boots (CVS equivalent drug chain in the UK)was one step ahead of CVS in portraying a black Mrs. Claus. In their commercial, they have an elegant real life Black woman as Mrs. Claus. In the ad called “Making Magic,” she is running the show where her white husband Mr. Claus is resting (or snoozing) with his feet up by the fireplace. He seemed to be enjoying his downtime wearing his famous red suit. One can say it was a quick “pit stop” at Santa’s lodge before taking the viewers to Santa’s Workshop where the twelve elves as Santa’s helpers are hard at work. In the commercial, the role of Mrs. Claus is played by British actress Adoja Andoh who is known for her Netflix series “Bridgerton.”
Well, the controversy does not end here. We would like to think that in 2024, a mixed couple as Mr. and Mrs. Claus is acceptable in a diverse world. Not so in the still very conservative United Kingdom, where historically Santa and Mrs. Claus had always been white. The conservative Brits do not find any humor in the Boots commercial. They have been vocal about boycotting Boots since the ad ran. They are also upset thinking that the producers of the commercial had intentionally made Mr. Claus appear a lazy persona for dozing off instead of working. They are blaming Walgreens global pharmacy conglomeratefor the Boots commercial.
Many in the UK and US agree that the conservative Brits missed the punchline of the ad. Mrs. Claus was blowing a kiss to all the women in the world who do work the hardest during the holidays by taking a heavy load of work on their shoulders. I think people make a conscious decision not to see certain things so that they can have an opinion. Simply put, conservative rightwing Brits are not ready for a black Mrs. Claus even though Santa and Mrs. Claus are mystical characters.
Reportedly, the fever has caught on in the USA as well. Many conservatives are deciding whether to shop at Walgreens or not! In the name of keeping tradition alive, such people will do anything to fuel division in society. They pretend not to see that this world is a diverse place with all kinds of people in it. White supremacy is out of fashion now. They just did not get the memo.
For centuries, in Christmas celebratory countries Mrs. Claus was a silent partner to Santa. Moreover, Mrs. Claus has historically been white. But for some reason she has been overlooked as part of Christmas celebration. I suppose she decided to step out of Santa’s shadow and take her rightful place in society. She was not content being a silent partner, just providing Santa her moral support while he goes out to fulfill his mission of distributing toys to the children around the globe on Christmas eve. She became liberated.
She was first mentioned in a short story titled “A “Christmas Legend” (1849), by a missionary in Philadelphia named James Rees. About a hundred years later in 1953, the Columbus Ledger in the state of Georgia published that Santa Claus’s partner was named Mrs. Claus.
But times have changed in the last seventy years. In keeping itself up-to-date with the sign of the times in the American culture, the new mantra became about diversity. Liberal minded Americans emphasized showcasing interracial relationships that idea of different ethnic groups of all colors can coexist. That idea really caught on fast. Department store named Macy’s produced a new innovative plan. In 2023, to bring diversity into the mix, the store decided to add Black celebrity actress Shirley Lee Ralph to play Mrs. Santa Claus in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. It was a historic first in the Parade’s history.
How is interracial marriages viewed in America in 2024? According to Gallup polls, around 93% of white Americans approve of such marriages. This kind of positive shift indicates societal change towards greater acceptance of mixed marriages and relationships. This is all true on paper. The reality is different no matter what people say to the people who take surveys. No one wants to be called a racist, and therefore, a lot of times they do not reveal their true feelings. In certain parts of America, prejudice against other races, colors and ethnicity is a fact of life. The state of Vermont, where 99.8% of their population identify themselves as white, holds a different view than Hawaii, the most ethnically diverse state in America.
Zeenat Khan is based in Maryland, USA
