The "New St. Nicholas" arrival to Amsterdam

November 25th, Amsterdam. Patrick Mathurin, who play this year again the new St. Nicholas (De Nieuwe Sint) arrived on his boat with his helpers to start the party and the good vibes of the New St. Nicholas in Amsterdam. Mathurin said he does not wish to interfere in the Pete discussion. "I want a solution and not get stuck with the problem," he said. Patrick Mathurin (1972), was born in Haiti, is an actor and boxing trainer. Sinterklaas, a character who shares his roots with Santa Claus, is the central figure of the Dutch winter celebrations. Believed to spend most of his time in Spain, his arrival by boat is staged every year in an elaborate spectacle which is broadcast across the Netherlands. Most of the entertainment, however, is provided by Sinterklaass "helpers", the clown-like Black Petes, or Zwarte Pieten. Considered by many to be the best part of the whole tradition, Black Pete has a large fan base in the Netherlands. However, the image of white people with blackened faces has sparked worldwide controversy. Before the New St. Nicholas arrival to the start point, the leader of Pegida, Edwin Wagensveld and some members of the Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West showed up to support the Zwarte Piet in The Netherlands The Dutch tradition of "Zwarte Piet" ("Black Pete"), in which people wear blackface makeup to portray a folkloric servant of Saint Nicholas, has been the source of increasing controversy for what its critics describe as racist caricature. In 2015, a United Nations committee urged the Netherlands, where the tradition is most widespread, to drop the character, finding that “the character of Black Pete is sometimes portrayed in a manner that reflects negative stereotypes of people of African descent and is experienced by many people of African descent as a vestige of slavery." (Photo by Romy Arroyo Fernandez/NurPhoto via Getty Images)