Megyn Kelly went viral when she declared Santa Claus “just is white,” but a decade later the idea of what St. Nick can look like has only expanded.
Aisha Harris had no idea of the uproar she would create when she recommended the Christmas Penguin.
Ten years ago, the writer and journalist published a lighthearted viral essay titled “Santa Claus Should Not Be a White Man Anymore,” in which she questioned the ubiquity of white Santa imagery.
“America is less and less white, but a melanin-deficient Santa remains the default in commercials, mall casting calls, and movies,” Harris wrote. “Isn’t it time that our image of Santa better serve all the children he delights each Christmas?” In fact, she suggests, a Christmas Penguin can represent the holiday instead of a person.
The backlash was swift, especially after anchor Megyn Kelly responded to the piece on her Fox News show “The Kelly File.” “This is so ridiculous, yet another person claiming it’s racist to have a white Santa,” Kelly said. “And by the way, for all you kids watching at home, Santa just is white.”
That kind of nonsense is to be expected from the far right. But TBF you’ll also sometimes see people on the left describe Israel as a white colonial state and Israelis as white, especially now during the whole Gaza thing, despite a clear majority of Israelis having (relatively recent) middle-eastern roots. Eg. Ben-Gvir, the controversial Israeli Minister of National Security and far right nationalist, has Iraqi and Kurdish ancestry.
Modern day Israelis are not historical Israelites. They looked more like Palestinians do today.
Bibi Netanyahu is paler than my white ass.
Netenyahu is Ashkenazi. Ignoring the fact that Ashkenazi Jews invariably and historically weren’t seen as white, they’re a minority in Israel and have been for a while now.
Most Israelis have middle-eastern or north african ancestry. Wikipedia: