[url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/us-patent-office-cancels-redskins-trademark-registration-says-name-is-disparaging/2014/06/18/e7737bb8-f6ee-11e3-8aa9-dad2ec039789_story.html]Better source linky.[/url] [quote]The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office canceled the Washington Redskins’ trademark registration on Wednesday, a move that won’t force the NFL team to change its name but fuels the intense fight by opponents to eliminate what they view as a racial slur against Native Americans. The 99-page decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board said the team’s name and logo are disparaging. It dilutes the Redskins’ legal protection against infringement and hinders the team’s ability to block counterfeit merchandise from entering the country. But its effect is largely symbolic. The ruling cannot stop the team from selling T-shirts, beer glasses and license-plate holders with the moniker or keep the team from trying to defend itself against others who try to profit from the logo. The ruling’s main impact is as a cudgel by an increasingly vocal group of Native Americans, lawmakers, former players and others who are trying to persuade team officials to change the name. The backlash against the name has never been more intense. ... Jesse Witten, an attorney for the Native Americans who filed the case, called the victory “a long time coming.” The board had previously ruled in favor of a different group of Native Americans, led by Suzan Harjo, that filed a similar case in 1992. But that case was later dismissed in the federal courts. Federal trademark law does not permit registration of trademarks that “may disparage” individuals or groups or “bring them into contempt or disrepute.” The ruling pertains to six different trademarks associated with the team, each containing the word “Redskin.” Robert Raskopf, a lawyer who has been representing the team since the 1992 case was filed, was not concerned about the ruling. He noted that Wednesday’s decision came from a divided panel of judges, with one of the three dissenting, and that the earlier case was won on appeal. In that case, the court did not rule on the merits of the case but ultimately said the plaintiffs did not have standing to file it. ... The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has refused to register trademarks containing the word “Redskins” about a dozen times since 1992 on the grounds that the term may disparage Native Americans. Among the rejected: Redskins Fanatics, Redskin Pigskins and Washington Redskins Cheerleaders. The latest to be turned down was “Redskins Hog Rinds,” which was submitted on behalf of a Capitol Heights, Md., man. In a letter from the agency in December, an examining attorney wrote that it was denied because it contained “a derogatory slang term.” Trademark lawyers say the decision largely is inconsequential to the team, even if it loses an appeal. The team would maintain “common law” rights to the name, allowing it to make a case against any individual or organization looking to profit from it.[/quote] So what does the Flood think? Is the overly-defensive line of political correctness encroaching on the field? Or does further review show that the ruling should stand?