# Dead rooster in intersection = gang ritual? Voodoo rite? \[INCL LINK TO CECIL's SD-Chi\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 29, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908 "2010-08-29T19:31:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ed\_Zotti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/fbc32d/32.png) [@Ed\_Zotti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ed_Zotti)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/1 "2010-08-29T19:31:54Z")
This came in via e-mail: A dead rooster was dropped in the middle of an intersection in our neighborhood recently (Springfield and Belle Plaine). It was smashed (from having been run over?) and seemed to have had its entrails pulled out deliberately. A neighbor reports having seen other dead roosters over the years, in the same intersection as well as in others. Our police department liaison says its unlikely that there’s a cock-fighting connection but can’t come up with any other explanation. Gang initiation? Voodoo ritual? Urban-chicken rumble? What’s the poop, Cece? --My Aim Is True ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/2 "2010-08-29T20:54:48Z")
In Haitian voudoun, [Papa Legba](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papa_Legba) is associated with crossroads, and is sacrificed roosters. In other traditions more or less the same guy is called [Eshu](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eshu) or [Ellegua](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ellegua). Could be one of those. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/3 "2010-08-30T00:12:29Z")
Maybe I’m missing the obvious here… when animals get crushed under the wheels of a road vehicle, the guts coming out is pretty much the norm. Couldn’t it just be a poultry RTA? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/4 "2010-08-30T00:22:56Z")
If it was just one I’d say yes, but neighbors say they’re noticing a pattern. Someone asked at the Chicago Tribune as well: > [@](#): > > Curiously, dead roosters occasionally appear in the middle of intersections in our Northwest Side neighborhood. We’ve had at least two this summer, and though I’ve never seen one, other residents report having seen others over the years. Some appear to have been carefully disemboweled. [Cock a Doodle Don’t](http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Dwp6-aV86g0J:www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/ct-oped-0829-zorn-20100829,0,5099048.column+dead+rooster+intersection+chicago&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us) (scroll down a bit) ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/5 "2010-08-30T00:38:10Z")
Here’s some more from Wikipedia. Exu is the name for Eshu in Quimbanda in Brazil. > [@](#): > > Marginal Locations > ‘Marginal locations’ refer to areas containing magical and spiritual significance where rituals are executed. Many Quimbanda rituals are performed at crossroads, as Exu is the Lord of the seven crossroads and Ogum is the Lord of the center of the crossroads. Other marginal locations include the streets at night (since exus are referred to as ‘people of the streets’), cemeteries, beaches, and forests, all during the nighttime.[10] > > Animal Sacrifices > Animal sacrifices have many usages in Quimbanda rituals. In certain rituals, devotees offer sacrificial pigeons, hens, roosters, goats, sheep, and bulls to help an exu spirit progress in power and capability.[11] Other rituals use animal sacrifices to help enlist the help of a spirit to carry out a deed. In a particular trabalho, one kills a black rooster at a crossroads and puts into a vase the parts of the rooster that correspond to the parts of the body of the person one wishes to harm. [Quimbanda](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quimbanda) ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/6 "2010-08-30T00:39:26Z")
I live in a major urban center but there are a bunch of people who own roosters and chickens in these parts. To immediately assume that voodoo rituals have been taking place is sort of silly. It was probably just roadkill and I wouldn’t be surprised if the “careful decapitations” are exaggerated descriptions conjured from overactive imaginations. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/7 "2010-08-30T00:55:18Z")
I thought it was just proof that they don’t always make it across. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/8 "2010-08-30T01:02:06Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > I live in a major urban center but there are a bunch of people who own roosters and chickens in these parts. To immediately assume that voodoo rituals have been taking place is sort of silly. It was probably just roadkill and I wouldn’t be surprised if the “careful decapitations” are exaggerated descriptions conjured from overactive imaginations. Hey, I’m not assuming anything, just throwing it out there since the question was asked. Voodoo and Santeria aren’t entirely unheard of down here on the Gulf, and they do sacrifice chickens; they even had a case heard in the U.S. Supreme Court guaranteeing them the right, [Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Lukumi_Babalu_Aye_v._City_of_Hialeah). Chances are pretty good it’s just roadkill, but if they had enough roosters in their neighborhood that they’re getting out and getting squashed on a regular basis, they’d probably know it - the damn things are _loud_. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/9 "2010-08-30T11:07:36Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > If it was just one I’d say yes, but neighbors say they’re noticing a pattern. Maybe there is something going on, but someone living nearby and keeping chickens within a poorly-maintained fence could just as easily result in a similar pattern. Not saying it _isn’t_ some sort of ritual - it’s just that the evidence doesn’t seem utterly compelling. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/10 "2010-08-30T14:32:12Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Maybe there is something going on, but someone living nearby and keeping chickens within a poorly-maintained fence could just as easily result in a similar pattern. > > Not saying it _isn’t_ some sort of ritual - it’s just that the evidence doesn’t seem utterly compelling. Yeah - if I happened across multiple dead roosters in the intersection of the neighborhood I live in now it might raise an eyebrow, but in the neighborhood downtown of my old office my reaction would be more like “those guys need to keep their roosters locked up better.” ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/11 "2010-08-31T14:44:27Z")
Desperate Cubs fans. 🙂 Seriously, keeping chickens in urban areas (for pets/for eggs) is one of those old fashioned new ideas that’s gained some popularity. Chickens will get out and run around if they can, with sometimes tragic results. ---
**Author:** ![cards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecd19e/32.png) [@cards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cards)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/12 "2010-09-01T01:38:28Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I thought it was just proof that they don’t always make it across. Still doesn’t explain why… but you win the thread ---
**Author:** ![GHO57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df788c/32.png) [@GHO57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GHO57)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/13 "2010-09-01T01:42:00Z")
> [@cards](#): > > > [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > > > I thought it was just proof that they don’t always make it across. > > Still doesn’t explain why… > > but you win the thread He probably went after the chicken that \*did \*get across. Why the chicken crossed… no idea. _shrug_ ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2010, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/14 "2010-10-11T00:53:42Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > Desperate Cubs fans. > > 🙂 > > Seriously, keeping chickens in urban areas (for pets/for eggs) is one of those old fashioned new ideas that’s gained some popularity. Chickens will get out and run around if they can, with sometimes tragic results. You get eggs from a rooster, Honeychile, and I’ll call that real voodoo!😃 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2010, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/15 "2010-10-11T01:27:40Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Maybe there is something going on, but someone living nearby and keeping chickens within a poorly-maintained fence could just as easily result in a similar pattern. > > Not saying it _isn’t_ some sort of ritual - it’s just that the evidence doesn’t seem utterly compelling. Given the location and the local population, Vodou isn’t a bad guess at all. It’s far more likely than chicken raising in that neighborhood. I believe raising chickens is still illegal here, although Evanston to the north just made raising up to 10 hens (\*only \*hens) legal. Given the reported location of the ex-chicken in the middle of the intersection, I’d be more inclined to lean toward ritual than a darting chicken getting nipped by a car - most road kill is near the curb, not the middle of the intersection. However, I’d also expect an offering to Papa Legba to have some writing underneath it. Cryptic looking symbols, most often with something looking like a compass in the center.[Like this](http://justeastofeden.blogharbor.com/papa_20legbatrace.jpg), but probably in chalk or corn meal. Either that was left out of the report, or it wasn’t present. If not present, then it’s more likely to be kids \*playing \*at Vodou than real Vodou. The local Ifa group contains themselves to mostly indoor ritual, and pigeons are their sacrifice of choice for rituals where the meat can’t be consumed. So I doubt it’s them. (I’m not part of their group, but have several friends who have worked with them.) I don’t know why people are so quick to think it _couldn’t_ be Vodou. There are more Vodou practitioners than homesteaded chickens on the North/Northwest Side of Chicago! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2010, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/16 "2010-10-11T17:38:56Z")
Thinking it over, I decided to check on the chicken legality thing. It’s…hard to parse. There are lots of articles at least one [rather funny YouTube video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOLwVrU9v7E) where police and city officials claim you can’t do it, but no one’s able to cite an ordinance or law specifically about it. [This article](http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=160734), written in March, assumes the legality of raising chickens, and claims that there are 148 members of “An online community group called “Chicago Chicken Enthusiasts”,” but admits they have no idea how closely that number correlates with the actual number of chicken raisers in the City. Likewise, I can’t give you a number of Vodou/Ifa/Santeria/Yoruba/Umbanda etc. practitioners in the city. I know roughly 60 personally, but that’s a small portion of the whole. But again, given the populations (lots of West African and Haitian immigrants) in that area, I still bet it’s more than chicken owners. And what chicken owners there are may very well be raising them FOR the sacrifice. ---
**Author:** ![Cheryl44](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@Cheryl44](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheryl44)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/17 "2010-10-25T01:08:52Z")
I was thinking Santeria–there’s a larger-than-you’d-think community on the northwest side. ---
**Author:** ![Ed\_Zotti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/fbc32d/32.png) [@Ed\_Zotti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ed_Zotti)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2010, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/18 "2010-10-25T17:22:28Z")
Do you have any contacts in the Santeria community? Email me at edzotti at aol dot com if so. Cecil may wish to inquire further. ---
**Author:** ![Ed\_Zotti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/fbc32d/32.png) [@Ed\_Zotti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ed_Zotti)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2010, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/19 "2010-10-29T12:01:15Z")
[http://chicago.straightdope.com/sdc20101028.php](http://chicago.straightdope.com/sdc20101028.php) ---
**Author:** ![karentiede](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5fc32e/32.png) [@karentiede](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/karentiede)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2010, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908/20 "2010-10-29T12:27:45Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#): > > Seriously, keeping chickens in urban areas (for pets/for eggs) is one of those old fashioned new ideas that’s gained some popularity. Chickens will get out and run around if they can, with sometimes tragic results. My neighbor keeps urban chickens. She doesn’t cull the hatchlings, and therefore the flock becomes 50% roosters pretty quickly. The alpha males stay home and take over the flock; the betas go on walkabout. Some number of loser roosters fly into my backyard, where they meet my dog, who loves fresh chicken. Depending on how recently he’s eaten, he may leave a chicken with “guts hanging out.” If I didn’t have better options for getting rid of the carcass, I’d consider dropping it out the window in the middle of an intersection. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dead-rooster-in-intersection-gang-ritual-voodoo-rite-incl-link-to-cecils-sd-chi/551908.md?page=2)