diff --git a/gnu/packages/pretty-print.scm b/gnu/packages/pretty-print.scm
index 12ec1f7889..b247cf21e1 100644
--- a/gnu/packages/pretty-print.scm
+++ b/gnu/packages/pretty-print.scm
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 ;;; Copyright © 2016, 2019, 2020 Efraim Flashner <efraim@flashner.co.il>
 ;;; Copyright © 2016 Ricardo Wurmus <rekado@elephly.net>
 ;;; Copyright © 2017 Marius Bakke <mbakke@fastmail.com>
-;;; Copyright © 2017 Ludovic Courtès <ludo@gnu.org>
+;;; Copyright © 2017, 2020 Ludovic Courtès <ludo@gnu.org>
 ;;; Copyright © 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 Tobias Geerinckx-Rice <me@tobias.gr>
 ;;; Copyright © 2019 Meiyo Peng <meiyo@riseup.net>
 ;;; Copyright © 2020 Paul Garlick <pgarlick@tourbillion-technology.com>
@@ -230,6 +230,18 @@ (define-public source-highlight
        #:parallel-tests? #f             ;There appear to be race conditions
        #:phases
        (modify-phases %standard-phases
+         ,@(if (%current-target-system)
+               ;; 'doc/Makefile.am' tries to run stuff even when
+               ;; cross-compiling.  Explicitly skip it.
+               ;; XXX: Inline this on next rebuild cycle.
+               `((add-before 'build 'skip-doc-directory
+                   (lambda _
+                     (substitute* "Makefile"
+                       (("^SUBDIRS = (.*) doc(.*)$" _ before after)
+                        (string-append "SUBDIRS = " before
+                                       " " after "\n")))
+                     #t)))
+               '())
          (add-before 'check 'patch-test-files
            (lambda _
              ;; Unpatch shebangs in test input so that source-highlight