A visit with Santa at a New Zealand shopping center was less than jolly for a mom who brought her deaf child to meet him.
The boy, Carter, sat on a stool placed next to Father Christmas and posed for an obligatory holiday photo. The child then extended his hand as a "thank you" to shake Santa's hand.
But when Carter missed Santa asking him what he wanted for Christmas, his mother signed to him in New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL).
Carter said he wanted a Gold Iron Man toy, to which Santa leaned over to the mother for clarification.
After relaying to Santa her son's request, the response was not what she was hoping to hear.
Kris Kringle told her:
“Is there nothing you can do to help him with surgery?"
You can watch a video of the exchange here.
Dear Santas - this is what not to say when you meet a deaf child for the 1st time.https://t.co/zJBJbtNZaz pic.twitter.com/nhbeA2FhwC
— Tony B (@Saltbar) November 27, 2021
The mother replied, "There was no need for that."
Santa was dismissive and asked again:
"Nothing you can do to fix it?"
The mom explained, while also signing to include Carter in the conversation, that "there is nothing to fix. We have sign language!"
Carter kept a pleasant smile on his face as he received a small book from Santa. The boy signed "thank you" and gave Santa a hi-five before going on his merry way.
Mom, however, was less mirthful from the encounter and posted the video on Facebook, where she wrote the following caption.
"This is not the first time I’ve had to have this conversation with Santa."
"It’s awful having to answer these questions in front of Carter - when we are there to talk about his Christmas Wishlist!"
"I kept up my smile but wanted to get [out] of there as quick as possible!"
People praised Carter's mom for how she interacted with Santa, and they also called him out for his audism—which one Twitter user argued was a form of ableism.
This makes me ill this is Audisim and a form of abelisim. Makes my heart break
— OwlBerryPhotography (@AutumOwl) November 28, 2021
Kuddos to the mom, but I’m sorry if I was there or this was my child I would have probably been more pissed like “what surgery Santa? What surgery does my perfectly communicative child need?” 😒
— Bre 👻✨ (@magic_bre) November 28, 2021
Dear Santa, say you want to piss off every deaf person without saying you want to piss off all the deaf people.
— Jesse Nicolas (@JessePresgraves) November 30, 2021
Advocating to “fix” Deaf/ HOH ppl is cultural erasure. The Deaf community has a rich culture and history, and oftentimes getting a cochlear implant a) causes someone to feel alienated from this culture, and b) reinforces the fact that they need “fixed”. They don’t. https://t.co/J2YfDXGzOT
— Noelle (@Gingrsnappr) November 28, 2021
Many people called for Santa to have disability awareness training because of his frequent interaction with children–or at least practice common decency.
It breaks my heart. I believe that if you work in a job where you interact with children as a role model. You should know a bare minimum of ASL just for moments like this.
— Steve Hawley and the Ivy (@_plinth_) November 28, 2021
A role model Mum - yes! A role model - Santa NO!
Glad she stood up and expressed the right words. Deaf awareness courses for all Santas please!
— Daliah Pietersen (@DaliahPietersen) November 28, 2021
Wow! Yeah, uh, that’s kind of a personal question 🤦♀️. Santa needs disability awareness training.
— BrandyBC (@BrandyBC2) November 28, 2021
JFC someone please send that man on a common sense and decency course...
— Adam Good Christmas 🎄 🏳️⚧️ (@AAMcBride21) November 30, 2021
This 👇🏽 😤 #SantaStruckOff as he could do some serious damage to young and impressionable minds. #Audism #Ableism at its worst. https://t.co/YeD4UdFeJj
— Deaf4Deaf (@Deaf_4_Deaf) November 29, 2021
Everyone is pissed at the Santa and I get it! Me too! But also - you’ve run into *so many* hearing people who think this, right? What really angers me is how widespread this thinking is because of the various ways that the media plants and reinforces this harmful misconception. https://t.co/R5fyaFhvLk
— Jenna Beacom, M.Ed (@jfbeacom) November 29, 2021
Others were quick to put Santa on the naughty list.
Santa is on my naughty list this year. 😵💫
Glad the boy’s mother advocated with him. But geez.
— Quinn 🦻🏽 (@Quinns_quirks) November 28, 2021
How the mum did slap him I don't know 😡Kudos to her. Santa your fired 👉🏽
— Jennie Webber (@WebberJenweb) November 28, 2021
Great response from Mum but a little sad she had to advocate for her son in this way TO SANTA!!
— Emily Beardshall (@EmilyBeardshall) November 28, 2021
Kudos to mom for her grace and composure while encountering the mall microaggression.
Now, let's make sure Carter gets the Gold Iron Man toy he wants and deserves.
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