Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he's changed course on his opinions of "Black Pete," but he won't go so far as to ban it, according to CNN.
For more than a century during Christmas, Dutch citizens dress up as Zwarte Piet or "Black Pete," wearing blackface, exaggerated red lipstick, and Afro wigs.
A controversial figure in Holland, "Black Pete" first appeared in 1850 book by Jan Schenkman, an Amsterdam schoolteacher.
In recent years, there've been protests against the character, with white supremacists dressing up as "Black Pete" and defending the tradition.
The basic story describes "Black Pete" was a black servant or helper who arrived by ship from Spain to the Netherlands to help Sinterklaas. But, the story goes to to say that when children were bad, he'd take them back to Spain with them. This was all during the time Holland was engaged in the slave trade.
“I was part of the group that said Zwarte Piet is black,” Rutte said during Parliament last Thursday. “I’ve said it often enough here [in Parliament].” Adding that he's met many people “with dark skins” who said they feel discriminated against because Zwarte Piet is black. “That is the last thing we want during the Sinterklaas celebrations,” Rutte said.
Rutte said his new views have come about in solidarity with the many George Floyd protests taking place across the globe.
In 2013, when asked about the controversial tradition, Rutte said, "Black Pete is just black and I can't do much about that."
Today, Rutte says he hopes the tradition will soon disappear in the Netherlands.