‘christmas, Christmas, christmas, christmas, christmas, christmas – tube just not at my old christmas’, is the Peter Faber’s classic christmas song ‘What a tremendous hustle and alarm’ from 1848.
But went it and thought that the long-bearded and fat santa claus, after all would be protected – even in these times, where gender roles, discrimination, and identity are discussed as never before – you can think again.
the Discussion about santa’s gender is flared up in the wake of a study where 4,000 people in the UNITED states and the united kingdom were asked whether they would prefer a male, a female or a gender-neutral version, if one imagines that santa claus had to be reinvented.
by 10.6 percent answered that they would prefer a woman, while 17,15 percent replied that they wanted a gender-neutral version of santa claus. It writes the BBC.
Is it time for the renewal of the classic santa claus – here in the guise of Lars Madsen of Salling in Aarhus. Photo: Jan Dagø
the Question of whether a woman can be as good a santa as a man, is also now on the agenda in the british town of Newton Aycliffe.
Here complained a councillor last month that a woman had been assigned the role as santa claus in the annual juleparade.
– It is my opinion that santa claus – also known as father christmas – is a male role. I have no problem with santa’s wife. But santa claus is an old tradition that is accepted by a broad majority of the population, says councillor Arun Chandran according to the BBC.
Henrik Marstal, denmark is a debater, and folketingskandidat for the Alternative in greater Copenhagen. He is accustomed to discussing gender and gender equality – among others in Politiken, where he is a real debater. Photo: Carsten Seidel
The Danish kønsdebattør Henrik Marstal, denmark, which among other things has written the book ‘Letters from a gender traitor’, find the debate important and see it as part of a larger questioning of the established gender stereotypes in society.
– The most important thing about this debate is well that a considerable amount of people have begun to abandon the hard-and-fast idea of santa claus, despite the fact that, according to the language talk about the person uniquely is a man, he says, and continues:
– It is a quiet showdown, I think, with the idea that the authoritative, mythological figures in our culture the starting point is the men. And the showdown will also come to relate to, for example, round, knokkelmanden, yes even God. And the reckoning is already in progress with the Swedish church’s recent offerings to the priests to use a gender-ritual in kirkehandlinger, where therefore God is not referred to as ‘he’ or ‘our father’.
