U.S. Patent and Trademark office cancels protection of Washington team name

[BLUE 1,026]

Posted by Mike Florio on June 18, 2014, 10:31 AM EDT

Whenever the government gets involved in the question of whether the Washington NFL team should change its name, people who support the current name ask whether the government has anything better to do. For one specific agency of the government, the answer is a resounding no.

 

That’s the same one-word response the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has supplied regarding the question of whether the name should continue to enjoy federal trademark protection. Via the Washington Post, the agency has canceled the registration, calling the name “disparaging to Native Americans.”

 

“This victory was a long time coming and reflects the hard work of many attorneys at our firm,” attorney Jesse Witten of Drinker Biddle & Reath told the Post.

 

It was indeed a long time coming, with the first challenge to the name filed back in 1992. The initial case failed on a technicality that the plaintiffs believe has been remedied in this case.

 

Moving forward, appeals are certain and lawyers will get paid and the issue won’t be settled for months if not years. In the interim, the ruling will serve only to give more momentum to the increasingly loud and persuasive voices that oppose the name.

 

If the name, after all appeals, is deemed to not be protected by trademark laws, anyone and everyone will be able to sell merchandise bearing the name and colors without the team having the ability to enforce its rights through legal action. While that may not be enough to compel owner Daniel Snyder to abandon his all-caps-never and/or “over my dead body” insistence on keeping the name, it would be the first tangible evidence of an economic consequence for continuing to cling to a name that the ever-evolving English language has over the slow march of time discarded from the list of socially acceptable terms.

 

Source: ProFootballTalk

Edited June 18, 2014 by BLUE

[CampinWithaMissingPerson 2,025]

Gonna be dragged out in court for a year or more until something comes to a head.

Edited June 18, 2014 by CampinWithGoatSampson

[OSUViking 505]

Source on a legitimate amount of Native Americans and/or the respective leaders of Native American organizations giving a shit? Because if this is just white people getting offended on behalf of the minorities again I'm going to be pretty pissed.

[Vin+ 3,121]

https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/479293226868690944

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Seems like a name change is inevitable.

[GA_Eagle 595]

Just do it, already. With the exception of Chia, I can't think of a Skin's fan I've ever met online or in person that I would care about being ticked off about this. Rip off the bandaid so I don't have to hear about it anymore.

[Thanatos 2,847]

Speaking as a person with native american blood, (my great-grandmother was a full-blooded cherokee, she was an awesome person, sadly she passed awhile back), I don't have an issue with the name, but I never really identified as a Cherokee.

 

I do, however, know many people who are 50%, (one of their parents is full-blooded), or they themselves are full native Americans. And to many of them, the term is incredibly offensive. Not all of them, but a good majority.

 

To put this in perspective, to them, this is the equivalent of having an NFL team named the "Niggers." (I know that word is banned on these forums, but I think its okay to use it in this context). I didn't truly realize what the name implied or what it brought up, and have reversed my stance on this issue over the past couple of years.

 

The name should absolutely be changed, and the longer they hold off on doing it, the more painful its going to be when they are forced to.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Thanatos19

[Guest Phailadelphia]

Speaking as a person with native american blood, (my great-grandmother was a full-blooded cherokee, she was an awesome person, sadly she passed awhile back), I don't have an issue with the name, but I never really identified as a Cherokee.

 

I do, however, know many people who are 50%, (one of their parents is full-blooded), or they themselves are full native Americans. And to many of them, the term is incredibly offensive. Not all of them, but a good majority.

 

To put this in perspective, to them, this is the equivalent of having an NFL team named the "Niggers." (I know that word is banned on these forums, but I think its okay to use it in this context). I didn't truly realize what the name implied or what it brought up, and have reversed my stance on this issue over the past couple of years.

 

The name should absolutely be changed, and the longer they hold off on doing it, the more painful its going to be when they are forced to.

 

100% this.

[BC 331]

[Tridentdawgpound 1,043]

Washington Clinton Dix

[Piggly Wiggly 960]

Source on a legitimate amount of Native Americans and/or the respective leaders of Native American organizations giving a shit? Because if this is just white people getting offended on behalf of the minorities again I'm going to be pretty pissed.

Absolute worst kind of people in the world.

 

Fucking pussy white Liberals.

[CampinWithaMissingPerson 2,025]

 

 

 

 

 

[JetsFan4Life 542]

[Omerta+ 1,206]

Just going to throw out there that if we do that we should rename Oklahoma because it means " Red People" in Choctaw. Where is the outrage, oh the humanity, oh the insanity...

 

I vote this....

 

 

I am not offended go forth and kick ass Washington Honkey's.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Ngata_Chance

[Maverick 791]

Absolute worst kind of people in the world.

 

Fucking pussy white Liberals. Phail

Fixed.

[BJORN 679]

The overwhelmingly majority of Redskins fans/people in this area are extremely against changing the name. It really seems to just be politicians in DC...being politicians, from my point of view. This being said, if it really is that offensive...then change it but I don't think it has a derogatory context and is more about pride than anything negative.

[Glanvilles Grits 142]

I'm not sure why you guys believe there will be a name change. It's not going to happen. The Redskins will take this to court and win their appeal, again. They've done it twice before I believe, and it will happen again.

 

Polls on Native American reservations have actually turned something like 70-80% of polled individuals stating that the Redskins name isn't official. Even more so, a wide scoped poll of Native Americans in 2004 showed over 90% of them don't feel it's degrading or racist in ANY way. Why? Because nearly every Washington Redskin fan on the face of the planet knows that the Washington Redskins name was given to the team by a Native American, as a badge of honor to represent their kind in the sport.

 

The ones actually blowing the hot air out of their heads at this logo and team name "issue" is a tiny, radical group of Native Americans that are just trying to gain attention to gain relevance by making demands.

 

This entire thing is just silly. It's all just a bunch of political bullcrap that's being run up town by some frown faced democrats who are looking to get out ahead.

 

 

 

The best part about all this is that the Trademark was removed by the FEDERAL Government. Not the state. All this does is eliminate the Washington Redskins ability to leap frog the court process when they want to issue a cease and desist. Now instead of being able to immediate cease all operations using their trademark and logos, they'll have to actually sue those using them and take them to court. Which by the way, they will win every single time because the Washington Redskins brand is an extremely popular, well established, and it brings in a shit ton of money every year. So really, all this does is create a small road block.

[Turry 755]

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2013/11/28/navajo-code-talker-says-redskins-name-not-derogatory/

 

Edited June 20, 2014 by monstersofthemidway

[Guest Phailadelphia]

The overwhelmingly majority of Redskins fans/people in this area are extremely against changing the name. It really seems to just be politicians in DC...being politicians, from my point of view. This being said, if it really is that offensive...then change it but I don't think it has a derogatory context and is more about pride than anything negative.

 

Who cares what the fans think?

[.AirMcNair. 1,232]

 

Who cares what the fans think?

 

Who cares what a very small minority of mostly white people think about a name referring to Indians? A name that isn't even agreed upon as being a racial slur. There are Indians, linguists, etc that claim it is an honorable name.

 

Oklahoma(meaning red people) was named that because an Indian chief suggested it. How is it any different than Redskin? Why is no one upset about it? The Redskins were apparently named the Redskins in HONOR of an Indian, as well.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

 

Who cares what a very small minority of mostly white people think about a name referring to Indians? A name that isn't even agreed upon as being a racial slur. There are Indians, linguists, etc that claim it is an honorable name.

 

Oklahoma(meaning red people) was named that because an Indian chief suggested it. How is it any different than Redskin? Why is no one upset about it? The Redskins were apparently named the Redskins in HONOR of an Indian, as well.

 

My mother's side of the family is of Native American lineage. They all find it offensive. That's good enough for me. Couldn't give less of a fuck what a poll says.

 

Edit: But if you really want to play silly poll games... http://www.buzzfeed.com/lindseyadler/native-americans-offended-by-racial-slur

Edited June 20, 2014 by Phailadelphia

[.AirMcNair. 1,232]

 

My mother's side of the family is of Native American lineage. They all find it offensive. That's good enough for me. Couldn't give less of a fuck what a poll says.

 

So we should change everything your family finds offensive? k

 

So long as we change everything every family finds offensive. It's only fair. Should be fun to watch all the changes.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

 

So we should change everything your family finds offensive? k

 

So long as we change everything every family finds offensive. It's only fair. Should be fun to watch all the changes.

 

I expected a stupid response, but not one THIS stupid.

[SteVo+ 3,702]

 

I expected a stupid response, but not one THIS stupid.

 

It's amazing that after TGP has been around so many years, we still get people making posts like this. If the reply is "THAT stupid," if it's such an idiotic post, then make the retort and end the argument. I've seen plenty of discussions on this site that seemed prime for quality debate, and whenever someone pulls the "That's such a stupid reply I don't even know what to say" card, the discussion somehow seems to go on without conclusion.

[Piggly Wiggly 960]

 

My mother's side of the family is of Native American lineage. They all find it offensive. That's good enough for me. Couldn't give less of a fuck what a poll says.

 

Edit: But if you really want to play silly poll games... http://www.buzzfeed.com/lindseyadler/native-americans-offended-by-racial-slur

They're likely all Liberals, too.