Vandals destroy family's inflatable black Santa Claus: 'Trump is really changing this country!'

Megan Johnson
Vandals destroy family's inflatable black Santa Claus: 'Trump is really changing this country!'

An Oregon family was shocked to discover that an inflatable black Santa Claus on their front lawn had been slashed by vandals just 24 hours after they put it on display.

Fritz and Belinda Richard, who are African-American, have lived in Bethany, Ore., for 21 years. This year, they decided to add an inflatable black Santa Claus to their holiday decorations. On Wednesday, Fritz Richard installed the 8-foot-tall inflatable in their front yard, only to see it slashed multiple times 24 hours later.

Richard told Beaverton, Ore., KOIN 6 News that he woke up on Thursday and discovered the slashed Santa deflated on their front lawn.

“Looks like someone had a problem with our black Santa,” he wrote on Facebook. “I found him this morning, someone took a knife to him. Trump is really changing this country! Is this how you make America ‘great again’, with hate crimes?”

“There [are] a lot of neighbors who have Christmas decorations, Caucasian Santas, and nothing that we know of has happened to them,” he told the the Oregonian.

In a move of solidarity with the Richard family, several of their neighbors have said they too will purchase a black Santa, and will put the Santa up in their yards. The Richards also plan to purchase a replacement Santa.

“It’s exactly the opposite result I think they were looking for,” Richard said of the people who slashed the Santa. “There will be hopefully a lot of black Santas around this neighborhood.”

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.