The role of stereotyping in public legitimation: the case of the PIGS label

Abstract

This article aims at deconstructing the "pigs" label, bestowed by the media on four southern European countries - Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece - in the wake of the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis. The article will demonstrate that the "pigs" label has no correspondence to reality by discussing the evolution of several European countries on the fields of economy, education, social policies and health. The "pigs" label should be viewed instead as an instance of symbolic discrimination and as part of an hegemonic narrative aiming at legitimizing austerity policies in Southern Europe and postulating the incompatibility between social development and economic growth.