Taking a break from accusing LA Fitness of racial profiling, Dipset lead man Jim Jones says he doesn’t get the outrage over the recent Dodge Ram/Martin Luther King Jr. commercial.
TMZ caught up with Jones in West Hollywood and asked his opinion on the commercial and those who were outraged by it.
Jones says he thought the commercial was “educational” and “dope” and didn’t understand why some felt it was disrespectful.
It’s worth noting that the King Center tweeted that they nor Bernice King, Dr. King’s daughter, are the entities that approve usage of his words or imagery. The approval came from King’s son Dexter.
Neither @TheKingCenter nor @BerniceKing is the entity that approves the use of #MLK’s words or imagery for use in merchandise, entertainment (movies, music, artwork, etc) or advertisement, including tonight’s @Dodge#SuperBowl commercial.
— The King Center (@TheKingCenter) February 5, 2018
According to NPR affiliate WABE Intellectual Property Management, the firm run by Dexter King that controls the usage of King’s intellectual property, issued the following statement.
“We found that the overall message of the ad embodied Dr. King’s philosophy that true greatness is achieved by serving others. Thus we decided to be a part of Ram’s ‘Built To Serve’ Super Bowl program,” said Eric Tidwell, managing director of the firm, in a statement.
Legions of social media users are accusing Dodge of appropriating Dr. King’s speech to pander trucks to the MAGA crowd.
To see Jim Jones full statement, plus video of accusing LA Fitness of racial profiling (ICYMI), flip the pages.