In keep with my goal of Intellectual Property education, I thought it would be interesting to point out that both the traffic signal and the gas mask were invented by a person of color, an African American man, Garrett Morgan, the son of a former slave.  I have an interesting video on my website which explains the invention and talks to his ancestors.

This is important because it was around the 1920´s, the traffic signal in 1923 after a terrible horse and carriage accident, and although he invented two of the most important and life saving devices he probably couldn´t drive on the street where his invention was implemented or  use the gas mask he invented to save lives, merely because he was black in America during the era of the Jim Crow laws, which excluded black Americans in all areas of life.

It also goes to show that any of us can be creative and who knows what life saving things we can come up with, if the son of a former slave subject to exclusion from Jim crow can create something, the traffic signal that is used everyday all around the world?

General Electric Company apparently bought the patent for 40 thousand dollars later and developed the signals still in use today around the world.

Although Mr. Morgan likely did not get what he deserved for these life saving devices, imagine if he had not patented his ideas?  The GE company would have become mega moguls from his invention and he would have gotten nothing!!

A good lesson in Intellectual Property protection!