So the answers on my comment have gone pretty much as I expected - which amounts to grownups explaining their cultural hang-ups to kids. Explanations that will still leave the kids puzzled as to why Santa is suddenly a different color. Because kids crave continuity. They're trying to learn about the world, and the explanation regarding a suddenly black Santa is comparable to telling kids that 2 plus 2 equals five.
Ever read a story to a kid over and over again? (Because kids often demand that you do.) And if you have experienced this, what happens if you get a part wrong? The kid will often catch it and demand you correct it. (This even happened to J.R.R. Tolkien when he read his first drafts of "The Hobbit" to his children). But, but, but, WHY would a kid care if there's suddenly a difference? Because kids crave continuity. That's how they make sense of the world.
Tell you what, though...if you want a way to tell a kid Santa isn't real, tell them that the reason for a black Santa is that "people are different, and skin color doesn't matter". That applies to the general population, but Santa isn't the general population. He is an icon for children who expect him to look a certain way because of mass media. All THAT explanation will do is make the parent feel virtuous, and the kid confused. Try putting a different-colored nose on Rudolph. Get the picture?
And someone explain to me...why is it so bad that Santa is usually portrayed as being white? Is a white person supposed to feel disenfranchised because Tiana is black? Or Mulan is Chinese? Or Jasmine is Arabian?
Bottom line: the black Santa bit is just another example of wokeness overreach by Disney. THAT'S what's irritating about all this. A company that's overcharging in its theme parks while corner-cutting on attractions and even food is at the same time virtue-signaling, and that really really REALLY ticks me off. You talk about lack of continuity. How can a company be open-minded and tight-fisted at the same time? Iger is doing his best to make that so. Nuts to him.
