Does A Black Santa Matter?

Black Santa at Mall of America

The largest mall in America is doing something that nobody expected, they are adding some color to their Santa Claus. Does it make a difference?

The Mall of America in Minneapolis has hired Santa Larry Jefferson from Dallas to be the official Santa Claus for the popular Santa Experience.

Santa’s suite is perfect down to the gold “Santa” belt buckle. His beard is a fluffy natural white and he has a wonderfully hearty “HO, HO, HO”!

In every way, Mall of America found the perfect Santa, but there is one minor change to tradition.

The Mall of America Santa Claus is black.

As expected, there are a lot of different opinions about a black Santa Claus online.

Some are very excited and think it is a good update of traditions.

Some are not so excited.

The owner of the Santa Experience is Landon Luther and he met Jefferson at a Santa Convention in Missouri. Of the 1000 participating Santa Claus’, only one was not white. That is the one that Landon hired.

How does Santa feel about it? “It’s no big deal, I’m still Santa. I just happen to be a Santa of Color,” said Jefferson.

To the kids, it isn’t a big deal, unless the kid is also black. For the children of color, their Santa Experience could be a little more special this year, and there is nothing wrong with that.

How do you feel about a black Santa? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.