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by Jodie44 on March 26th, 2006

Jodie44

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When and why was the word "pig" first used as a derogatory term for a police officer?

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  • by ggonnigan on March 27th, 2006

    ggonnigan

    The Oxford English Dictionary cites an 1811 reference to a "pig" as a Bow Street Runner--the early police force, named after the location of their headquarters. Before that, the term "pig" had been used as early as the mid-1500s to refer to a person who is heartily disliked.
    The usage was probably confined to the criminal classes until the 1960s, when it was taken up by protestors.

    Starting in August 1968 and for a number of years afterwards, police officers were called pigs by young people, the disenchanted and even the media. This came about when a group who called themselves the Yippies, protested near the 1968 National Democratic Convention in Chicago. They had a small pig as their presidential candidate, and when police disrupted their demonstration, they started to call the police pigs. The expression caught on. Years later, the radical leaders of the Yippies became mainstream and calling police "pigs" drifted into the past.

    False explanations for the term involve the gas masks worn by the riot police in that era, or the pigs in charge of George Orwell's Animal Farm.

    Reference Links:

    http://www.school-for-champions.com/history/cops_pigs.htm

    http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mcop.html

    Comments

    • Wow, nice research. I wasn't sure if the 60's stuff started it or not. Pretty crude, imho. Thanks for the great answer!

      Jodie44

      by Jodie44 on March 28th, 2006

    • Hey - I just saw your avatar! Always nice to have the face with the name. Where have you been anyway? Come back!

      Jodie44

      by Jodie44 on November 19th, 2006

    • When I grew up, 1960's before the "pig" label, we always said to "cheese it, its the fuzz" Yeah we called them the "fuzz"

      tjatherton

      by tjatherton on November 19th, 2006

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