“I can’t breathe” were the last words spoken by Eric Garner, after dying from a chokehold at the hands of NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo.
Catherine L. Crump, 57, of Illinois recently tried to trademark this now infamous phrase, “I can’t breathe”. In the last few weeks, we have seen celebrities and protesters wear this phrase on t-shirts, sweat shirts, hats, etc. to support the movement that Black Lives Matter.
So we have to ask the question, is Crump trying to profit off of the death of Eric Garner’s last words? Or is she doing this to raise money for his family? Does she have a charity for unarmed Black men killed at the hands of the police?
Well, Crump claims she isn’t trying to make money on the phrase, but admits she isn’t affiliated with the Garner family in any way?
What?
That brings us back to the same question, why file a $325 petition to trademark a phrase if you don’t intend to make some sort of profit?
BMWK, we live in a free country and she had to write to file a petition, but honestly, is it in bad taste to make money off a man’s dying words?