The Meaning of Christmas
Since the secularization of the holiday season (and arguably before that), Christmas and all the other end-of-the-year holidays we have grown to celebrate have collectively transcended beyond the celebration of a religious icon. Ultimately, the holiday season has become one opportunity to reflect on humanity beyond the religious—does anyone remember the 1980s all-star celebrity charity song, Do They Know It’s Christmas?
This opportunity descended upon Minnesota’s Mall of America earlier this month when the mall operators hired Larry Jefferson to be one of their seasonal mall Santa’s. Jefferson is not a newcomer to playing the role of Santa Claus. He has been playing Santa for over 
The only thing is, Larry Jefferson is African American. He’s the first African-American Santa that the Mall of America has ever hired. This observation is why Jefferson as Santa received some notoriety and coverage—first, as perhaps a symbol of late-coming progressiveness by the mall authorities, and then secondly, as a figure of some racist backlash by the public for deviations from the traditional white Santa representation. According to HuffPost, local Minnesota news outlets who asked the public to weigh in on the hiring of Jefferson as Santa received such insulting, racist comments that those surveys had to be halted.
News of this prompted the Asian-American actor, George Takei, to take to Twitter on a December 3, 2016 posting that while observing people’s reactions, he was reminded that during World War II, “in our internment camp he (Santa) was Asian. So there.”
So there is right. Although Santa Claus is a figure borrowed from various European folklore traditions and has now been reinterpreted in the United States, Santa is not just a figure but also an idea. After all, having participated in various secret Santa exchanges over the years, haven’t I myself, an Asian-American man in his thirties, played “Santa” too?
“Santa” transcends physical attributes and ought to go to the heart of humanity. To look at Santa from the exegetical perspective—to require the rosy white cheeks and the traditional Anglo connotations—is missing the point. Larry Jefferson attributed those reactions to him as part of “the times in which we are living in.” But the times we are living in has also included an African-American man in the role of U.S. president for the last eight years, as well.
The backlash for “Black Santa” not just lacked Christmas spirit, but the human spirit as well. On the personal level, it left Jefferson without dignity in his role to bring cheer to families at the Mall of American. On the bigger level, this Bah Humbug threatens respect for humanity if these “are the times we live in.”
Links mentioned about Larry Jefferson’s story are below:
CBS Sunday Morning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KU7kO0AUS1U
HuffPost: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/black-santa-racists-freak-out_us_5844fb5ee4b09e21702f631b