Christmas is often sold as a season of arrival and perfection, but its oldest stories tell something very different. In this episode of The Persistence, Angélica Cordero explores how modern Christmas imagery, from Santa’s familiar red suit to the feeling that the holiday should look a certain way, was shaped by 20th-century culture, then peels back the gloss to examine Christmas as a story of movement, displacement, and care. At the heart of the episode is A Charlie Brown Christmas, the 1965 animated special that defied television norms with its silences, real children’s voices, and sad little tree, shaped in part by Mexican immigrant animator Bill Melendez. From the nativity to Peanuts, this episode reflects on why stories that resist polish and certainty endure, and how belonging is often something we practice quietly, not something we’re handed.

This episode was written by and produced by Angélica Cordero, with a little help from ChatGPT.

Our theme song is Don’t Kid Yourself Baby by Fold, used with their blessings. Podcast artwork for The Persistence features Mexican-American activist Jovita Idar and was created by Tamra Collins of Sunroot Studio.

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