US Patent Office cancels Washington Redskins trademark
In an act that critics are calling an overstep of power, the US patent office has “canceled” the Washington Redskins’ trademark. The government agency acted on Wednesday to punish the team, saying that “a substantial composite of Native Americans found the term Redskins to be disparaging.”
Through its Trademark Trial and Appeal Court, the USPTO first cancelled the trademark in 1999, but the decision was overturned by a federal court on appeal in 2003. The Redskins are likely to appeal this new cancellation as well and would retain federal trademark protection pending appeal. An appeal could take years to play out.
Daniel Snyder, the owner of the Washington Redskins, has rebuffed criticism of the name and insisted that he will not change it, and Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the N.F.L., who grew up as a Redskins fan, has supported him.
The decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, part of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, was hailed by some Native American groups and members of Congress who have pressured Goodell to force Snyder to abandon the name.
“We are confident we will prevail once again, and that the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s divided ruling will be overturned on appeal,” team attorney Robert Raskopf said in a statement. “This case is no different than an earlier case, where the Board cancelled the Redskins’ trademark registrations, and where a federal district court disagreed and reversed the Board.”
The team issued a copy of its attorney’s statement and did not immediately offer any other reaction. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said by email: “We do not have anything further.”
“Any effort by Mr. Snyder to appeal this ruling can only be viewed as a bigoted attempt to continue to profit from this racist team name at the expense of the dignity of Native Americans,” Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) said in a statement.
Do most Native Americans find it offensive, what is the history of the name – read more HERE
Redskins offensive? photo Katidid213 via wmc
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