Pizza Patrón has burned a few more crusts of late. The Dallas-based pizza chain hit a nerve in the nationwide immigration debate with its ongoing pizza-for-pesos program, and grated cotija on the wound by offering free pizza to those who ordered in Spanish, has pissed of puritans from both side of the border with its upcoming radio advertisement campaign.
Patrón's new promotional pizza, dubbed La Chingona, packs a lot of spice, with 90 slices of jalapeño-stuffed pepperoni plus extra pickled jalapeños. But while the heat will certainly offend those with a weak constitution, it's the name that doesn't sit well with some Spanish speakers. The verb that chingona derives from is equivalent to the grandaddy of all swear words, and it's used so many times throughout the ad that CBS and Univision have refused to run it.
La Chingona is in fact so offensive to some that NPR won't run a story about Patrón's plight on the radio, opting to keep their La Chingona coverage on the untamable Internet. You almost have to ask yourself of Pizza Patrón: What the fuck were they thinking?
Not so fast, says Pizza Patrón. "La Chingona," as used in these ads, is the epitome of awesomeness. Someone with la chingona can clap with one hand, subdue rattlesnakes and live with his mother-in-law. Someone with la chingona is badass.
Patrón has placed a banner on its website claiming it's been unfairly censored, and that the networks that cast off the ad regularly play songs and talk-show programing that are much more offensive. They also want you to know that La Chingona is available for a limited time only, and that the pizza has a recommended price of $7.99 -- a puta bargain if I've ever seen one.
