U.S. Patent Office cancels Redskins trademark registration

[Dr. Cornelius]

U.S. Patent Office cancels Redskins trademark registration

 

 

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has canceled the Washington Redskins trademark registration because it considers the team's name “disparaging to Native Americans," reports the Washington Post.

 

The case, which was on behalf of five Native Americans, appeared before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.

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

 

Added Alfred Putnam Jr., the chairman of Drinker Biddle & Reath: “We are extraordinarily gratified to have prevailed in this case. The dedication and professionalism of our attorneys and the determination of our clients have resulted in a milestone victory that will serve as an historic precedent.”

 

The victory won't have any immediate impacts on the Redskins organization, or owner Daniel Snyder's decision to keep the team's name. The Redskins will appeal the ruling, but should the ruling be upheld, it would mean that the Redskins would lose its federally trademarked protections.

 

I wonder what this means for Union High School or even the state of Oklahoma.

 

 

Oklahoma: from Choctaw, literally "red people," from okla "nation, people" + homma "red." Coined by Choctaw scholar Allen Wright, later principal chief of the Choctaw Nation, and first used in the Choctaw-Chickasaw treaty of April 28, 1866. Organized as a U.S. territory 1889; admitted as a state 1907.