A mall Santa left a little boy in tears at the Harlem Irving Plaza outside of Chicago after shutting down the boy’s wish of receiving a Nerf gun for Christmas.
According to a video of the incident posted to Facebook, the anti-gun Santa asked the young boy what he wanted for Christmas. The child removed his mask and asked for a toy nerf gun, to which Santa harshly responded, “No, no guns.”
The boy’s mom quickly jumped in, reiterating to the Santa that her son was asking for a “Nerf gun,” but Santa wouldn’t budge, responding, “Nope, not even a Nerf gun.”
“If your dad wants to get it for you that’s fine, but I can’t bring it to you,” the Santa Claus said as the boy nervously held his face mask and looked to his mom in confusion. “What else would you like? Lots of other toys. Legos. There’s bicycles. There’s cars and trucks. What do you think?”
The little boy then turned to his mom, who was carrying a baby, and burst into tears. The child continued to cry as his mother bent down to comfort him, saying, “You’ll still get it.”
The boy’s mother, Sabella DeCarlo, posted the video on her Facebook account with a caption lamenting the Santa’s behavior.
“My poor baby. This was the first year Michael was excited to go see Santa. It was supposed to be magical but instead I had to watch my sweet little boy fight back tears because Santa told him No because of his own personal beliefs,” DeCarlo wrote. “I had to think fast and explain to him that this Santa was just a helper and not the real guy. I just wanted to console my baby and get him out of there, flipping out on Santa would have only made it worse. His Elfie is going to bring him a Nerf gun directly from the North Pole, from the real Santa, tonight.”
The video earned a slew of horrified reactions, including many offers to gift the boy a nerf gun.
DeCarlos posted an update on her Facebook account following an outpouring of support for her young son, thanking those who offered to send him a nerf gun. While her son “has enough magic coming,” DeCarlos went on to encourage those who still wanted to send a gift to look into charity options like Toys For Tots.
“Thank you to EVERYONE who has offered to send Michael a nerf gun and who has sent one already. Your gift will restore some of the magic that that awful Santa stole. With that being said, he has enough magic coming and if you are still feeling generous please send a toy to Toys For Tots or another charity of your choice for a child who really needs some magic this season,” her post stated.
I’m editing to say, I want to turn this situation into something magical for boys and girls who may be wishing for toys,…
Posted by Sabella DeCarlo on Sunday, December 6, 2020
According to DeCarlos’ post, the Harlem Irving Plaza also reached out to her to “make it right,” adding that she appreciated their “quick response and kindness.”
