George Floyd’s family intends to file a lawsuit against Kanye West and his colleagues for $250 million in damages as a result of the rapper’s defamatory remarks concerning Floyd’s passing.
The lawsuit will be brought on behalf of Floyd’s daughter by Roxie Washington, who is the child’s mother. The family is bringing charges of harassment, misappropriation, defamation, and infliction of emotional distress against West, his business partners, and colleagues.
A statement claims that Floyd’s family sent West a cease-and-desist letter over his remarks on Drink Champs. During the performance, the rapper made a bogus claim, claiming that Floyd passed away from fentanyl rather than being murdered by former police officer Derek Chauvin. (At this time, it’s unclear if Candace Owens is one of the aforementioned “associates,” as West drew the incorrect information about Floyd’s passing from her recent Daily Wire “documentary” The Greatest Lie Ever Sold.)
When asked about Chauvin, who was found guilty of killing Floyd by placing his knee on Floyd’s neck and back, depriving him of oxygen, resulting in brain damage, cardiac arrest, and other injuries, West stated, “If you look, the guy’s knee wasn’t even on his neck like that.”
West is charged with intentionally providing “blatantly false representations” regarding Floyd’s passing in the lawsuit announcement in order to “promote his brand and increase marketing value and revenue for himself, his business partners, and associates.”
The attorneys Floyd’s family hired for this lawsuit appear prepared to argue that West’s false remarks about Floyd have had an equally negative impact on his family and daughter, despite the fact that there are no legal grounds to launch a defamation claim on behalf of a deceased person.
“Kanye’s words are disgusting to belittle George Floyd’s life and to profit from his horrible death,” said another attorney, Pat D. Dixon III of Dixon & Dixon. We’ll make Mr. West answer for his egregious comments about Mr. Floyd’s legacy.