‘BASED SANTA’ steps in for ‘BETA CLAUS,’ brings Nerf gun to boy who was brought to tears because of mall Santa’s anti-gun activism

Christmas 2020 was put right for at least one boy when “the real Santa” made a visit to his home after hearing that an overly political mall Santa crushed the child’s wish of finding a Nerf gun under the tree.

The new Santa took a massive Nerf gun to the boy’s house on Monday and apologized for the mistake made when the child’s family visited Santa at the mall the previous day. After the visiting Santa also did a magic trick for the boy and gave him a Nerf ball, his mother exclaimed, “This is the real Santa.”

The house call was arranged by Harlem Irving Plaza mall near Chicago, which was hit with strong backlash after a video of the boy’s traumatic visit with its Santa circulated on social media. “No guns, nope, not even a Nerf gun,” the mall Santa told the boy. “Nope. If your dad wants to get it for you that’s fine, but I can’t bring it to you.”

The boy’s mother posted a video of the encounter on Facebook, which showed her trying to console him as he cried about Santa’s response. “I had to watch my sweet little boy fight back tears because Santa told him no because of his own personal beliefs,” she said. “I had to think fast and explain to him that this Santa was just a helper and not the real guy.”

The reaction on social media was almost universal revolt. Commenters ripped the mall Santa and gave him derisive nicknames, such as “Beta Claus,”“Woke Santa,” and “SJW Santa.” The NRA even joined the fray, saying, “This Santa had one job, and he failed miserably. Someone get this boy Nerf guns.”

Angry critics also posted negative reviews on the mall’s Google Maps entry, with such comments as “The place to go if you want the mall Santa to make your kids cry,” and “Great job finding a political Santa who makes kids cry.” Another said, “Avoid at all costs, until they fire the Santa under their current employ. Very disrespectful to children.” But Harling Irving Plaza managed to win back some fans by making amends. One commenter said, “One star for hiring a woke Santa for destroying Christmas for children. Five stars for firing woke Santa.”

The mall and its third-party Santa supplier issued a statement, saying the offending Santa was heartbroken by the grief he caused and resigned. “The Santa company will continue to remind all Santas how important it is to not impose personal opinions during visits with the children,” the statement said.

The heroic Santa who saved the day by delivering the boy’s Nerf gun earned the nickname “Based Santa” on Twitter. Many social media users were touched by the incident and wanted to give the boy a Nerf gun. His mother tried to turn the ordeal into a positive by inviting people to send Nerf guns, which will be distributed to children in need.

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