A Pig's Tale: Hog Named Six Seven Spared by Miami-Dade Mayor.
It might not have been at the same level as granting clemency to festive fowl, but the mayor of Miami-Dade experienced a presidential-style act this week by ritually sparing the life of a swine named Six Seven.
Daniella Levine Cava executed the holiday gesture at the Cuban-themed Latin Cafe 2000 in the center of Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood.
“This animal is guiltless. She deserves this act of mercy. Her criminal record is spotless,” Levine Cava said in a speech with inescapable allusions to the sheer volume of pardons issued from the start of the commencement of a second term in office.
“If we disregard eating six or seven apples per day,” she went on. “May this pig enjoy a lengthy and joyful existence without fear.”
This ceremony, which both honors and questions the region’s Hispanic tradition of consuming swine during the holidays, was created to emulate the annual turkey pardoning at the White House.
The animal, provided by a local firefighter, was christened after the popular vernacular phrase of young people exclaiming “six seven” – inspired by a hip-hop line – often seemingly at random. The phrase became so ubiquitous that a leading lexicon site recently declared “six-seven” its top term for the year.
A Future Secured
Six Seven the pig is now scheduled to spend its days at a rural sanctuary “distant from barbecues and spits”, according to the ceremony's official statement.
“The pig pardon has become one of our favorite ways to open the holiday season,” said the cafe owner, in a particularly upbeat message.
“It represents the essence of Miami: happy, multicultural, and based in heritage that bring people together. Every time, we are honored to observe culture and compassion in a way distinctively Miamian.”
Guests enjoyed a vegetarian menu of spinach croquetas and cafecito as they toasted the swine's new lease on life.
