The majority of British children would be happy to see Father Christmas as gay, male, or black. But the older generation wants a more traditional Santa. A new poll shows.
“Age is the key factor among the wider public, with the youngest Britons – those aged 18-24 – supporting a gay Santa by 60% to 20%,” reads a report by YouGov, which conducted the poll on December 14-15.
Findings show that the majority of Britons older than 65 “Father Christmas that is gay cannot be accepted by at least 58% of the population.”
The general population seems to be divided on the matter with slightly more respondents – 41% to 39% – still preferring Santa as a straight man.
There is a much wider gap in opinion between people who believe Father Christmas could have a mother, and those who wish him to stay male. The survey found that 54% of the 1,714 adults in Britain aren’t willing to allow a woman Santa. However, this number rises as the age groups get older, where only 27% support the idea. The Brits younger than 35 are more open to Santa depicting a woman. 31% of them are against it.
Regarding a non-white Santa, the general UK population seems to be less accepting, not only compared to the youngest age group, but also to Americans who were polled by YouGov last year: only half of Britons (49-53%) say it’s fine for him to belong to any ethnicity other than white.
“The USA was, however, more accepting than two-thirds of its citizens (67%) and half as open to Black Santas (560-60%).” the researchers said.
Responding to an advert by Norwegian postal services that featured Santa as gay, the survey was carried out.
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