By: E&P Staff As if the '60s era wasn't dead enough, word has emerged that former leaders of the militant Black Panther party plan to market a hot sauce called Burn Baby Burn.
The original phrase came out of the Watts riots in 1965. Now the Huey P. Newton Foundation, named for the cofounder of the the Panthers, has applied to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark the slogan. David Hilliard, the foundation's executive director and an original Black Panther, said they hope to raise money for antiviolence efforts.
The tagline would be: ?A Revolutionary Hot Sauce.?
This set newspaper editorialists on edge today. The Philadelphia Inquirer observed that this was ?the latest sign that capitalism inexorably marches on?.Once upon a time, this phrase conjured images of deadly inner-city riots and calls for revolution. Now it will promote a spicy condiment.
?Nothing reminds you of the passage of time more than seeing an infamous protest slogan on the shelf in Aisle 4, next to the ketchup.?
The San Antonio Express-News editorial today declared: ?And you thought the '60s were dead; you thought they were buried so deep it would take a team of archaeologists to unearth them. Think again.?
It also complained that the marketers are ?people who should know better than to exploit an ugly, violent time in our history,? adding that this was ?a tawdry attempt to capitalize on a tragedy; the Watts riot left 30 dead and hundreds injured.?
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here