Canceled K9: Oregon Police Dog Causes Controversy Over Her Name Resembling a Rapper's

These days, even animals can get canceled.

And in Oregon, recently, such a thing occurred.

Kind of.

The state’s Bend Police Department has long referred to a canine as “Lil’ Kim.”

In Facebook posts as well as official press releases, BPD’s lauded the Belgian Malinois.

But — as you may know — there’s also an entertainer by the same name.

That’d be Kimberly Denise Jones, AKA rapper, actress, and television personality Lil’ Kim.

lil kim delivered bars and looks here pic.twitter.com/CdZjthYtvu

— amir (@youwereoffbeat) March 24, 2021

Here’s Kim and other stars in the hit film Moulin Rouge:

RT @MissyElliott: @xtina @LilKim @Pink @MYAPLANET9 🎉🎊🎂 20th year anniversary #LadyMarmalade HISTORY 🙌🏾 You had to be there!!! 😉👏🏾👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/pJ8GQ72uG9

— Ivan (@rnb_001) March 27, 2021

A few of Lil’ Kim’s hits, per Billboard.com:

Sugar (Gimme Some)
Magic Stick
Do U Wanna Roll (Dolittle Theme)
How Many Licks?
Call Me (From Booty Call)

Back to Bend, Oregon, Lil’ Kim the dog recently found herself under (as opposed to in) heat.

Activist Riccardo Waites — founder of the Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly — sent emails of complaint to Police Chief Mike Krants.

That led to a meeting between the two.

In a video Thursday, Riccardo explained the doggone deal:

“It’s a little tiny black dog, K9 dog, that the police call ‘Lil’ Kim.’ If you’re a person of color, or if you’re a fan of Lil’ Kim, you know her significance in Hip Hop. You also know that she’s a gangster rapper.”

Bottom line:

“Just to be honest, I don’t want to see Lil’ Kim out there biting [nonwhites].”

As relayed by Oregon Public Broadcasting, it turns out the dog had been nicknamed “Lil'” because she’s…lil’:

The chief called “Lil’ Kim” the dog’s “nickname,” which he said stems from her petite size relative to other K-9s with the force.

In response, Riccardo had asked, “Why are you justifying why the dog is called Lil’ Kim, instead of accepting that it’s hurting people in the community?”

“While it may appear a small or inconsequential matter to some,” he said, “it is not to those of us who remember how police dogs were used against peacefully protesting civil rights workers and People of Color in the 1960s and are still used as a means of crowd control and intimidation today.”

Mike told Oregon Public Broadcasting he understood the upset:

“Although the dog is not named after a musician, it’s important to recognize that some people may assume that or believe that. I think in the eyes of some community members, there is a connection historically to the use of dogs, specifically on protestors and Black community members, and that, that could bring a fear of canines.”

OPB reports that “[Mike] denies [Riccardo’s] appeals caused him to instruct officers on a name change.

Yet, he did just that.

You’ll be glad to know the dog — who’s been with the department for four or five years — just got a haircut of sorts: They took a “lil'” off the top: