250 child witnesses
The historian and professor at the University of Burgundy, Jean-Pierre Garcia tells us about the origins and repercussions of this historical event in Dijon. In front of a crowd of children, Christians from Dijon set fire to a mannequin symbolizing Santa Claus. In 1951, we are less than ten years after the liberation. The feeling of invasion by the Americans is strong in France and in the Côte-d’Or. On this day, Christian believers say “fight against lies”. It is the beginning of the commercialization of this religious holiday and of American omnipotence in Western Europe.