Chans the pig won’t be in your caja china this Nochebuena. He was pardoned, Miami-style.
Chans is one very lucky pig. His present this year was a proclamation by Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava that no one would be putting this piggy in a “caja china” this Christmas.
Levine Cava pardoned two-month-old Chans (Swedish for Chance) Monday morning at Latin Café 2000 Brickell as part of the county’s third annual pig pardoning. It’s similar to the turkey pardoning the president of the United States does every Thanksgiving, except it involves pigs.
While some people might like to eat turkey on Christmas Eve too, in South Florida, everyone knows Nochebuena is all about that mouthwatering lechón.
“Eating turkey on Thanksgiving Day is a great American tradition, but here in Miami, our unique tradition is caja china,” Miami-Dade’s new Madam Mayor said. It was her first pig pardoning.
Aguacate Sanctuary of Love, a vegan cafe and animal sanctuary at 12100 SW 43 St., rescued Chans from a slaughterhouse. He will be given a new temporary home at Aguacate Sanctuary, where he will have space to run free with last year’s rescued pigs Peppa and Petra, along with cows, roosters and chickens.
“Much like Chans, we, the restaurant industry, are on the chopping block, and many of us are barely surviving,” said Latin Café CEO Eric Castellanos. “This effort sheds light on the struggles my brothers and sisters in the community are facing. We are asking, store away the caja china.”
Instead, Castellanos and Levine Cava are asking the community to support their local businesses this holiday season — and maybe save a few pigs while you’re at it.
“Please support us — your small home-grown restaurants that also help put food on the table for the thousands of workers that make up the culinary community here in South Florida. We will and can get through this together if you give us a chance,” Castellanos said.
As for Chans, the pig is looking for a forever home, preferably one that is vegan, vegetarian or at least doesn’t like bacon.
This story was originally published December 21, 2020 at 2:53 PM.
