Dvorak: Santa’s skin color flies right over kids’ heads

The color of Santas skin though a hotly debated topic among adults this week pretty much means bupkis to the kids mobbing Kris Kringle at a Hyattsville mall.

That red suit means loot. And it basically ends right there.

Im just excited to see him, and I want him to bring me some doll babies, DaeLese, 6, said as she waited in line at the Mall at Prince Georges, which features one of the regions few African American Santas. But his race wasnt what brought DaeLese and her mom, Masche Williams, 26, to the mall.

I dont care if hes yellow, black, green. And she doesnt care shes so excited to see him because he brings toys, Williams said.

I took my two blond-haired, pink-cheeked children to this mall Santa, a light-complexioned black man with the requisite white beard and hearty laugh. Would they notice his race?

Nope. They didnt hesitate or comment. They climbed on his knees, smiled for the camera elves and ticked off their wish lists. Their voluminous wish lists.

Okay, their pure, naked greed was embarrassing. But I felt a sense of relief that, unlike Megyn Kelly of Fox News, my children and the other kids in line werent fixated on Santas skin color. In our amazingly diverse region, they dont feel any need to declare Santa white. Or any other race or ethnicity.

But the debate does raise an interesting question: Should we rotate Santas on that mall throne to fit our increasingly colorful world? Latino Santa a las dos, Korean Santa until four, then the Senegalese Santa comes.

I spent days trying to find out if these versions of Santa exist. At casting agencies, Santa sourcers said they rarely get ethnically or racially specific requests. I called Latino and Hispanic associations all over the region to see where the best Spanish-speaking Santa could be found.

Huh. I dont know of any. But thats a good business opportunity, said Michel Zajur, chief executive of the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

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Dvorak: Santa’s skin color flies right over kids’ heads

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