This document has been drafted within the framework of the European project Talking about taboos.The project has been funded with support from the European Commission. The document reflects the view only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

1. THE NL BLACK PETE DISCUSSION
RELEVANCE & FRAMES DERIVED
FROM THE DUTCH QUESTIONNAIRE

2. THE QUESTIONNAIRE
• Online available since April 30, 2014
• Distributed through social media by partners
of the Ezzev Foundation - ongoing
• A second channel of distribution will be
opened by partner Royal Institute of the
Tropics (KIT)
• N=199 (today – June 9, 2014: N=316)

3. THE TOPICS
The questionnaire topics are related to the intense Dutch
discussion on the representation of the fantasy persona of
Black Pete (Zwarte Piet) during the Dutch Santaclaus
celebrations:
• The relevance of the discussion
• The desirability of the current representation
• The level of understanding of the respondent for the reasoning and
emotions of those pro and against the current representation
• The labeling by the respondent of those pro and against
• The necessity to end the discussion

4. FRAMEWORK
The framework for the questionnaire is the
European project TALKING ABOUT TABOOS.
The project aims to find and apply country specific and
common good practices with regards to dealing with
instances of everyday exclusion. The resulting good
practices will be published on a dedicated Internet
platform.

5. RELEVANCE
Respondents were asked about the relevance of
the discussion
Very irrelevant: 27.6%
Irrelevant: 12.6%
Neither relevant nor irrelevant: 12.0%
Relevant: 35.2%
Very relevant: 12.6%

6. DESIRABILITY OF THE CURRENT
SITUATION
Very undesirable: 12.1%
Undesirable: 16.7%
Neither desirable nor undesirable: 28.8%
Desirable: 17.2%
Very desirable: 25.3%

7. LEVEL OF UNDERSTANDING
REASONING
Level of understanding the reasoning of those pro
Yes: 86.8%
No: 13.2%
Level of understanding the reasoning of those against
Yes: 71.1%
No: 28.9%

8. LEVEL OF UNDERSTANDING
EMOTIONS
Level of understanding the emotions of those pro
Yes: 80.6%
No: 19.4%
Level of understanding the emotions of those against
Yes: 73.5%
No: 26.5%

9. LABELING THOSE PRO
(multiple options allowed)
• Racists: 4.6%
• Oversensitive people: 8.7%
• Normal people: 59.0%
• Traditional people: 53.9%
• Real Dutch people: 15.4%

10. LABELING THOSE AGAINST
(multiple options allowed)
• Foreigners: 10.3%
• Oversensitive people: 41.0%
• Normal people: 48.2%
• Modern people: 23.1%
• Anti-racists: 11.8%

11. IMPORTANT THAT
THE DISCUSSION ENDS
• Yes: 61.3%
• No: 24.7%
• I don’t care: 13.9%

12. FRAMING (1)
The most common ways to frame the discussion are (in order of times
mentioned):
• Normal people discussing with normal people – this viewpoint is most popular among those
with a neutral, negative or very negative attitude towards the current representation of Black
Pete
• Normal people discussing with oversensitive people – this viewpoint is most popular among
those with a positive or very positive attitude towards the current representation of Black
Pete
• Traditional people discussing with normal people - this viewpoint is most popular among
those with a neutral or negative attitude towards the current representation of Black Pete
• Traditional people discussing with oversensitive people - this viewpoint is most popular
among those with a very positive attitude towards the current representation of Black Pete
• Traditional people discussing with modern people - this viewpoint is most popular among
those with a negative attitude towards the current representation of Black Pete

13. FRAMING (2)
A far less common to frame the discussion is
that normal people discuss with modern
people – a viewpoint most popular among
those with a very negative attitude towards
the current representation of Black Pete.

14. FRAMING (SOURCE)

15. INTERPRETATION (1)
• The people pro see themselves as normal people or as traditional
people
• Those against see those pro as normal people or as traditional
people
The difference seems to lie in how traditions are valued.
• The people against see themselves as normal people or modern
people
• Those pro see those against as normal people or as oversensitive
people

16. INTERPRETATION (2)
The publicly most audible analysis by those with a very negative
attitude towards the current representation of Black Pete is that
this topic concerns racism. This resonates highly in the comments
BUT hardly translates into dubbing people who support the current
representation of Black Pete as racists (a mere 4.6% does so).
This seems to implicate that while racism is seen as a cause of the
current representation of Black Pete very few see conscious racism.
Rather they see ignorance – as can also be derived from the
comments – ignorance stemming from tradition.