RE: Washington Redskins stripped of trademark protection due to 'disparaging' name
June 18, 2014 at 7:27 pm
(June 18, 2014 at 7:19 pm)rexbeccarox Wrote: I'm not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, it is sort of disparaging, on the other, I've talked to several native Americans about this, and those I've talked to couldn't care less about it, and some of them even expressed their displeasure with the controversy, siding with those who don't want anything to change. Still, on another, isn't the US government taking away the First Amendment by denying the Redskins' trademark? Is it a hate speech thing? I'm not clear on the law. Can anyone fill me in?
I'd say I'm against it because if one team with a controversial name changes its name, it could easily lead to other similar controversies. The Chicago Blackhawks, Kansas City Chiefs, Atlanta Braves and a number of other North American teams have names that could be considered 'disparaging'. The Redskins fans are largely against it, and many Native Americans are ok with the name, changing it could do more harm than good.
