Mall of America hosts first black Santa

“Hello, this is Santa”, the voice on the other end responded, as if it were second nature. He’s been Santa Larry for 17 years now. A few families had driven cross-state just to come see him; another woman told him she’d waited more than 25 years to meet a black Santa.

Growing up in a family with 11 siblings, Jefferson always loved Christmas, he said. He has dressed up as the Christmas figure since he was 12 years old, when he took care of presents that year because his dad was sick.

He then matriculated through a leading Santa school and joined Texas’ Lone Star Santas, a nonprofit with over 350 Santas, Mrs. Clauses and elves who visit disaster-affected areas and donate toys to children in need. Jefferson gladly stepped up. He then brought in all of the family’s presents hiding in the vehicle. Star Tribune editor Scott Gillespie tweeted that the comments section on its “Black Santa” story had to be disabled, presumably due to blowback from some readers.

The Mall of America isn’t alone in treating the North Pole like the Jim Crow south. Jefferson has had some offers to appear on the Steve Harvey Show and is becoming quite the celebrity.

“Perhaps an elementary teacher would have students do an art project that depicts things they celebrate, or maybe a secondary social studies teacher is having their class study Santa Claus as a symbol of American tradition or as a cultural icon”, Graser explained.

Jim Fletcher, director emeritus of the fraternal order, said the group also has around six Hispanic Santas and at least two Jewish members. “They’re doing great. Minnesota has a lot of great children”.

“For all you kids watching at home, Santa just is white”, she said.

Santa’s made up. Your parents were buying you that shit the whole time. Should they be educating children if they don’t know what they meant in a memo? Because, to Jefferson, that’s what kids will be looking for as opposed to the color of his skin.

Following his brief stint, Jefferson will return to Texas.

Let’s put aside a gathering of 1,000 Santas for a second (or not – watch the tug of war here!), but Jefferson is putting his fleshy finger on the troubling minority Santa crisis.