Pots And Pans: The Perfect Time

Banging pots and pans is a time-honoured form of protest in Latin America, known as a cacerolazo. The practice dates back to at least 1848 when French housewives protested high rents, unemployment and starvation wages. In modern times, it gained popularity in the 1970s among conservative women in Chile who opposed Salvador Allende, the first Marxist president of a liberal democracy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people in cities around the world took to banging pots and pans outside their windows to show their appreciation for healthcare workers. Banging pots and pans is also a way to ward off evil spirits during New Year celebrations.

Banging pots and pans as a form of protest

Banging pots and pans is a form of protest with a long history. In medieval Europe, people would gather around someone's house and bang pots and pans to show their disapproval of an occupant's deeds. This tradition was called "rough music". The practice has also been used to ward off evil spirits, as in some New Year's Eve celebrations.

In Latin America, banging pots and pans is known as a "cacerolazo", a time-honoured form of protest. The practice dates back to at least 1848, when French housewives protested against high rents, unemployment, and starvation wages. Cacerolazos gained popularity in the 1970s among conservative women in Chile who opposed the country's first Marxist president, Salvador Allende. As women were generally responsible for cooking at the time, the use of pots and pans became a powerful symbol of protest.

Cacerolazos have since been used across Latin America to protest a range of issues, including dictatorship, economic crises, and government responses to the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, the practice was adopted by protesters in the United States following the death of George Floyd and the imposition of curfews. More recently, people in New York City have taken to banging pots and pans to show their appreciation for doctors and nurses during the coronavirus pandemic.

To ward off evil spirits

Banging pots and pans is believed to ward off evil spirits and is often done at the beginning of a new year. This tradition is thought to scare away the ghosts of the previous year. However, banging pots and pans can also be done at any time to drive out demons from your home.

To effectively use this method to ward off evil spirits, follow these steps:

• Warn any residents or neighbours beforehand so they can get ear protection or leave the area.
• Recite a prayer or mantra while banging the pots and pans. For example, you could say, "No demons are welcome in this space, I command you to leave. This is a place of light and love."
• Walk around your entire home, ensuring that you make enough noise to scare away any unwanted spirits.

In addition to banging pots and pans, there are several other methods to ward off evil spirits:

• Burning sage or using essential oils like lavender, Palo Santo, and sage to cleanse the space of negative energy.
• Communicating with the spirit and asking it to leave by saying something like, "This is not your residence; please move on."
• Using feng shui to transform the home's energy from negative to positive by placing items such as Pi Yao or wind chimes in specific areas of the house.
• Placing cleansing crystals, such as selenite or hematite, around the house or wearing them as jewellery.
• Sprinkling salt in the corners of your house and doorways to create a barrier that evil spirits cannot cross.

To show appreciation for doctors and nurses

Banging pots and pans is a way to express appreciation for doctors and nurses, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City. At around 7 pm, NYC residents would stand on their balconies or by their windows, banging pots and pans to show their gratitude towards hospital workers. This movement, called #ClapBecauseWeCare, also included applause and songs dedicated to first responders.

Banging pots and pans has also been a form of protest in Latin America, known as "cacerolazo." The practice dates back to at least 1848 when French housewives protested high rents, unemployment, and starvation wages. In the 1970s, conservative women in Chile opposed the country's first Marxist president, Salvador Allende, by banging pots and pans. This symbolized their femininity and the lack of food caused by US sanctions. Cacerolazos have since been used for various causes in Latin America, including left-wing protests against the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet in Chile and demonstrations against the Brazilian government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, making noise with pots and pans has been a way to ward off evil spirits during New Year's Eve celebrations and a method to wake up sleepyheads, as seen in various cartoons and TV shows.

To wake someone up

Banging pots and pans is a sure-fire way to wake someone up. It's a time-honoured method, often seen in cartoons and comedy sketches, and for good reason. The loud, clanging noise is an effective way to rouse even the deepest sleeper.

In popular culture, there are numerous examples of characters waking others up by banging pots and pans. In the manga series Azumanga Daioh, Osaka says it's her dream to wake someone up by banging a frying pan with a spoon. In Last Exile, Lavie wakes Claus every morning by banging a hammer against a sheet of metal. Even Garfield, the lasagne-loving cat, resorts to banging pots and pans to wake up his owner, Jon.

Banging pots and pans has also been used as a form of protest in South America, particularly in Chile and Argentina. This method of making noise has been adopted by communities to show support and appreciation for first responders, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. At 7 pm, people would come out and bang pots and pans to thank the healthcare workers and other essential workers risking their lives.

So, if you need to wake someone up, banging pots and pans is a tried and tested method. Just be prepared for some potential grumpiness from the person you wake up—it might not be the gentlest way to start the day!

To scare away unwanted visitors

Banging pots and pans together can be an effective strategy to scare away unwanted visitors such as bears and rats.

In one instance, a woman in Colorado was banging pots and pans together on her porch to scare away a bear. While the strategy is usually effective, the bear attacked the woman in this case as she got too close to it.

Rats are very wary of new, loud, and unfamiliar sounds. They have poor vision but are very sensitive to touch and sound. The sound of banging pots and pans will be unfamiliar, sudden, and startling to a rat, causing it to scurry away.

Other ways to create loud noises to scare away rats include stomping your feet, clapping your hands, yelling, using loud machinery, and setting off noisemakers.

Frequently asked questions