A mock funeral held for the "Breaking Bad" character Walter White to raise money for Albuquerque's Healthcare for the Homeless organization stirred up controversy over the weekend.
The charity held the fake event on Oct. 19. in honor of the fake meth dealer of the critically acclaimed AMC television series. According to KOB Eyewitness News 4, the fundraiser earned the Albuquerque charity $17,000 in funds.
Fans of the "Breaking Bad" Wcharacter paid for tickets to say their final goodbyes to Walter White. "Breaking Bad" is set in Albuquerque, NM. (See photos here.)
"It brought people into Albuquerque, it brought attention into Albuquerque, and it brought money into Albuquerque," fan Susan Tyr-Connail told KOB.
However, the "spectacle" drew a lot of controversy, specifically for taking the fake funeral a little too far. Walter White was "laid to rest" in an empty coffee in a real gravesite with a headstone in Sunset Memorial Park. Some believe the act was disrespectful to those who have loved ones buried at the cemetery.
"My son is buried about 15 yards from where the makeshift gravesite is," Manuel Montano told KOB.
A petition was started to have the gravesite removed from the cemetery:
Adding a physical grave site will encourage tourists to visit a sacred burial site of hundreds and hundreds of loved ones.
Cemetery officials say if crowds start gathering at the grave site of Walter White, they'll consider getting rid of his headstone. But the "officials" should not put the family members through such disrespect during the process of deciding whether or not too many people are visiting the makeshift grave.
Please, help the families and friends of those who have made Sunset Memorial Park their final resting place by signing this petition.
Organizers of the event also tried to organize a live stream event, but were shut down due to copyrights. The petition against remove Walter White's headstone has gathered 934 signatures thus far. The cemetery has not removed the gravesite nor have they announced any plans of its removal.
Click here to donate to Albuquerque's Healthcare for the Homeless organization.
