CHITLINS

THE HISTORY OF CHITLINS

Chitlins, also known as chitterlings, are the unwanted off cuts or offals of the pig. These offals are found in the digestive system and are commonly identified as the large intestines. When slavery was legal in America, slave owners commonly fed their enslaved workers as cheaply as possible. At hog butchering time, the best cuts of meat were kept for the master's household and the remainder, such as fatback, snouts, ears, neck bones, feet, and intestines, were given to the enslaved.

Chitlins have since become a regular part of many southerner's diets and family traditions. We've joined Chitlins together with fashion to make a statement--that Chitlins are no longer the unwanted remnants of pork. Chitlins are a movement. Chitlins represents the perseverance, preservation, and survival. Chitlins represents turning hardships inside out and the ability to make something out of nothing.