Who owns the ‘White Lives Matter’ trademark? Black radio show hosts defend phrase’s acquisition

Two black radio hosts trademarked the phrase ‘White Lives Matter,’ after rapper Kanye West launched merchandise with the slogan at Paris Fashion Week earlier this year in October. The slogan sparked a heated debate on the relevance of the statement, considering its retaliatory origin.

West wears his merch during Paris Fashion Week (image via Instagram/Ye)

Shortly after his appearance at Paris Fashion Week, Kanye took to Instagram to reveal his plans of “selling these White Lives Matter tees.” However, Kanye West cannot profit from the slogan as it does not belong to him. He won't be able to sell any merchandise with the slogan.

The phrase was initially trademarked by an anonymous entity in 2020. The right of usage now belongs to the two black radio hosts Ramses Ja and Quinton Ward.

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The trademark for 'White Lives Matter' slogan was acquired so that it wouldn’t fall into the wrong hands

Hosts of Civic Cipher, Ramses Ja and Quinton Ward (image via Ramses Ja)

In an interview with Capital B, Ramses Ja and Quinton Ward, hosts of the radio show Civic Cipher, announced that as of October 2022, they own the trademark for the phrase that West tried to use in his newest Yeezy line. The Atlanta-based radio show focuses on racial justice. The show is a nationally syndicated broadcast that aims to provide a platform for Black and Brown voices.

Ja and Ward, however, filed for the trademark only a few days ago and it will reportedly take a few years to finalize.

The radio show hosts claimed that the person who held the rights had purchased it in 2020 so that it would not fall into the wrong hands. They further claimed that they did not make this decision for personal profit. They aim to aid the growth of black communities and the Black Lives Matter movement with their actions. Ramses Ja said:

“If we were to sell that trademark, for whatever amount of money, we could donate that money to causes that we feel would benefit Black people, like the NAACP or Black Lives Matter organizations.”

Ja continued to say that he would've preferred to stop production of White Lives Matter products altogether, but since that is not possible, he and Ward will send out cease and desist letters to those selling the slogan via products.

"White Lives Matter," which stormed the internet after Ye's fashion show, has been termed a hateful, white-supremacist slogan by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center. When West announced that he'd like to sell his merch, the owner decided to hand over the trademark.

The trademark is licensed under Civic Cipher LLC, which is owned by Ramses King, aka Ramses Ja. The license covers the usage of the phrase on all material goods and services, and the attorney of record is Morris E. Turek.

The Radio LLC now owns the slogan 'White Lives Matter' (image via US trademark and Patent office)

West is yet to reach out to the radio hosts regarding the trademark of 'White Lives Matter'. Meanwhile, Ja and Ward would like to point out that their focus is larger than Kanye West. Their focus rests on ending systemic racism across the country. He said:

“We’ve got people running for office right now, and we have people trying to suppress our vote and disenfranchise us. I can’t spend all my time worrying about what Kanye is saying.”

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The 'White Lives Matter' slogan was used by white supremacists who highjacked it from the Black Lives Matter movement when protests against police brutality and systemic racism were underway.

The slogan was further popularized by Kanye West, who has been barred from social media for his anti-Semitic posts. The stunt also lost him several brand deals from Adidas, Balenciaga, and Gap, removing him from billionaire status.