“I can’t breathe” (anti-police brutality slogan)

Eric Garner died in Staten Island on July 17, 2014. A police officer had grabbed his neck (seemingly choking Garner), and a video of the incident recorded Garner saying, “I can’t breathe!” After a grand jury decided not to indict the police officer on December 3, 2014, the phrase “I can’t breathe” went viral. The basketball player LeBron James wore an “I can’t breathe” T-shirt before his team played the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center on December 8, 2014.
 
“I can’t breathe” is nationally known as a statement against police brutality. The phrase “I can’t breathe” was filed for a trademark on December 13, 2014, by someone not related to the Garner family.
 
   
Wikipedia: Death of Eric Garner
On July 17, 2014, Eric Garner died in the Tompkinsville neighborhood of Staten Island, New York, after a police officer used a grappling hold around Garner’s neck for about 19 seconds. Some view it as a chokehold, while others argue it was a headlock and that no choking took place; the use of chokeholds is a violation of New York City Police Department (NYPD) policy.
 
Garner was initially approached by officer Justin Damico on suspicion of selling “loosies”, single cigarettes from packs without tax stamps. According to the video filmed by bystander Ramsey Orta, a fight occurred before the incident that Garner broke up. After Garner expressed to the police that he was tired of being harassed and that he was not selling cigarettes, officers moved to arrest Garner. A brief struggle ensued in trying to handcuff Garner. Pantaleo then put his arm around the much taller Garner’s neck and pulled him backwards and down onto the ground. After Pantaleo removed his arm from Garner’s neck, he pushed Garner’s head into the ground and four officers moved to restrain Garner who repeated “I can’t breathe” eleven times while lying facedown on the sidewalk. In the second video, Garner is seen lying on the sidewalk for roughly seven minutes after losing consciousness.
 
While one officer told the then-unconscious Garner to “breathe in, breathe out,” the officers otherwise made no attempt to resuscitate him, stating they believed he was still breathing and that it would be improper to perform CPR on someone who was still breathing. An ambulance arrived on scene, but four people — two medics and two EMTs — did not administer any urgent care such as CPR on Garner; Garner later went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance and was pronounced dead approximately one hour later at the hospital.
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On December 3, 2014, a grand jury decided not to indict officer Pantaleo. The event stirred public protests and rallies with charges of police brutality and was broadcast nationally over various media networks.
     
Gawker
“I Can’t Breathe”: Asthmatic Father Dies After NYPD Chokehold
Andy Cush
7/18/14 2:19pm
In the video above, Eric Garner, a 43-year-old father of six, can be seen arguing with plainclothes NYPD officers on Staten Island. When the officers attempt to handcuff him, Garner asks them not to touch him, and one puts him in a chokehold. Several other officers pile on, slamming Garner into the ground, and he begins complaining that he can’t breathe. Now, Eric Garner is dead.
   
KSL.com
Obama applauds LeBron’s ‘I Can’t Breathe’ shirt
By Alexandra Jaffe, CNN
December 19th, 2014 @ 4:41pm
WASHINGTON (CNN) — President Barack Obama praised basketball star LeBron James for wearing an “I Can’t Breathe” protest shirt during his pre-game warmup last week.
 
“You know, I think LeBron did the right thing,” Obama told People magazine in their issue out Friday. “We forget the role that Muhammad Ali, Arthur Ashe and Bill Russell played in raising consciousness.”
 
The Cleveland Cavaliers player wore the shirt, which shows support for Eric Garner, the unarmed African American man who died after a white police officer put him in a chokehold, before the Cavaliers played the Brooklyn Nets on Dec. 8.
     
Time magazine
Illinois Woman Files Trademark Application for ‘I Can’t Breathe’
Eliana Dockterman @edockterman Dec. 19, 2014  
The woman is not related to Eric Garner
 
An Illinois woman has filed an application to trademark Eric Garner’s dying words, “I can’t breathe” for use on hoodies and T-shirts.
 
Catherine Crump, 57, applied last Saturday for legal registration of the phrase that has become a rallying cry at protests across the country and has even been printed on t-shirts worn by celebrities like LeBron James.
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In her trademark application, Crump says she has been using the phrase commercially since August 18, one month after Eric Garner’s death. She told the Smoking Gun that she had not consulted with Eric Garner’s family before filing for the trademark but that she is not seeking to profit use of the phrase.
   
Washington (DC) Times
‘I can breathe - thanks to the NYPD’ shirts flood pro-police NYC rally
By Kellan Howell - The Washington Times - Saturday, December 20, 2014
Supporters of the New York Police Department marched in the streets Friday night wearing black hoodies with the phrase “I can breathe, thanks to the NYPD.” The rally came as protesting continues over the police killings of Eric Garner and Michael Brown.
 
Mr. Garner’s supporters have used his last statement, “I can’t breathe,” as a mantra against police brutality and racial bias in the justice system. A grand jury decided Dec. 4 against indicting officer Daniel Pantaleo for the July 17 death of Mr. Garner.
 
(Trademark)
Word Mark I CAN’T BREATHE
Goods and Services IC 025. US 022 039. G & S: Clothing, namely hoodies, t-shirts for men, women, boys, girls and infants. FIRST USE: 20140818. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20140818
Standard Characters Claimed
Mark Drawing Code (4) STANDARD CHARACTER MARK
Serial Number 86479784
Filing Date December 13, 2014
Current Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Owner (APPLICANT) Crump, Catherine L. INDIVIDUAL UNITED STATES 206 N. Green Bay Rd., Apt. 408 Waukegan ILLINOIS 60085
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE