The Dogs of the Goddess: El Negro Matapacos

 

Today a post about another of the Goddess's dogs, El Negro Matapacos, which translates as The Black Cop Killer.

A black Chilean stray dog has again become a talking point as protests across the United States continue over the death of a black man in police custody. El Negro Matapacos, the black Chilean dog, has lately become a symbol of protests who, in 2011, started showing up at demonstrations in Chile and turned aggressive against police.

 

On November 26, Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Chile's national police of committing serious human rights violations including the use of excessive force on the people in the streets and abuses in detention. The face of the Chilean dog which had fought valiantly against the police in the past was spray-painted onto the side of buildings and printed on t-shirts during the protests. The heroic protest has again become relevant as Black Lives Matter matter got rejuvenated after the custodial death of George Floyd and protests flared across the United States. Source

I am already in love with this dog, but then I'm a tart.

A black Chilean dog wearing a red bandana made his mark during the New York City subway protests beginning in November 2019.

The protests were ignited by videos documenting police assaults on black and brown youth in the subways. For example, in one, an officer punches a 15-year-old unarmed African American teenager in the face.

Stickers bearing the dog’s image jumping a turnstile appeared on subway walls and trains. They also surfaced in social media illustrations announcing his arrival in New York City.

 Negro Matapacos – a name the dog received as he attained notoriety – literally translates to “Black Cop Killer.” In Latin America, it is not uncommon to use an animal’s color as their name. “Matapacos” has a specific local meaning, referencing the infamous brutality of the Chilean police. Negro Matapacos never killed anyone, but snarled, lunged and barked when the police threatened and assaulted the protesters.

Going international

Negro Matapacos died of natural causes in 2017, surrounded by caregivers. However, he continues to represent indignation against oppression.

In October 2019, massive protests erupted in Chile, sparked by a 4% subway fare increase. The demonstrators want socioeconomic equality and free education and health care. They oppose the right-wing president, Sebastián Piñera.

Negro Matapacos’ image has appeared throughout the protests, gracing banners, posters, decals, murals and papier mâché and metal sculptures.

The Chilean demonstrators’ hashtag, #EvasiónMassiva, references subway fare evasion. Stickers appearing in New York City depict a smiling Negro Matapacos jumping a turnstile atop the word “evade.”

 In a documentary about him, sociologist Jaime Rodriguez observed that the Chilean demonstrations beginning in 2011 responded to the absence of a social safety net. Chile’s free-roaming dogs epitomize exposure to harm: “There is nothing more precarious than a dog in the street,” Rodriguez said.

One student protester speculated to director Víctor Ramírez about why dogs like Negro Matapacos joined the students. He speaks to the shared vulnerability of free-roaming dogs and students to institutional violence. Source

 Not only is this environment of oppression and conflict the exact sort of environment which grows witches, but El Negro showed great discernment in only attacking police. He has even achieved the ultimate witchy thing of becoming semi-divine, or at least a folk Saint: