by artists Annette Krauss and Petra Bauer

Sinterklaas is coming soon. On November 16th Sinterklaas’s boat carrying him and his Zwarte Pieten from Spain will arrive to Utrecht, filled to the brim with gifts to the children. It is one of the most celebrated Dutch traditions, cherished by the people and not to forget, the commercial branch. But recent years have made more and more visible the outrage of many people about the Zwarte Piet (Black Pete) character: more and more protests are springing up and discussions around Zwarte Piet put the issue of racism back in the public debate. A court case in Amsterdam in July this year ruled that the Zwarte Piet character is a negative stereotype that is offensive to the black community in the Netherlands.

As part of a larger campaign surrounding the issue of Zwarte Piet, focussing on the formal presence of the dean of the University of Utrecht at the ‘Intocht’ (welcome ceremony of Sinterklaas into town) of Sinterklaas in Utrecht, during this Basta! evening, we will show the film ‘Read the Masks. Tradition Is not Given’ by artists Annette Krauss and Petra Bauer. The film questions the Dutch tradition of Zwarte Piet in the light of its social and political implications and caused much upheaval in 2008 when it was showed as part of the exhibition ‘Be(com)ing Dutch’ at the van Abbe museum in Eindhoven.

The speaker for the introduction is to be announced.
The discussion afterwards will be facilitated by professional moderator Abulhassan Al-Jaberi.

Thursday 6th of November, 19:30 at de Kargadoor, Oudegracht 36, Utrecht