Is this controversial Dutch holiday character racist?

It's the subject of a CNN documentary that premiered this month. In 'Blackface' African-American filmmaker Roger Ross Williams goes on a journey to understand why the notoriously liberal Dutch feel compelled to dress in blackface during the annual holiday tradition of Sinterklaas (the Dutch Santa Claus). How can a country that boasts of a multi-cultural society and liberal attitudes be so oblivious of its own colonial past? The reason can be seen in this home video shot at a celebration of Sinterklaas this month. It's because the children who don't know anything about racist issues have a wonderful time with their hero Zwarte Piet (Black Pete).