Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Let My 1/8th People Go!


The Washington Redskins have a different victory in the ongoing battle against a group of American Indians about the racially degrading nickname. This has been a 16 year battle between them and usually it's a back and forth fight. But this time the Washington Redskins took the lead.

In a ruling dated June 25 and first circulated Thursday, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that the youngest of the seven Native American plaintiffs waited too long after turning 18 to file the lawsuit that attempts to revoke the Redskins trademarks.

The lead plaintiff, Suzan Shown Harjo, president of the Washington-based Morning Star Institute that advances Native American causes, is going to appeal.

They initially won - the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office panel canceled the trademarks in 1999 - but Kollar-Kotelly overturned the ruling in 2003 in part because the suit was filed decades after the first Redskins trademark was issued in 1967.

I understand there's money involved with these teams, but the name still upsets and stings. They should look at the emotional and cultural damage this foolishness have caused. After all the Native Americans have been through, this should not be an issue. But it is, and heartbreaking to see this madness continue on.

2 comments:

Butch said...

I wish they would get rid of all these "mascots" that put done a group of people. I think it is insulting having that sterotype as the mascot. Let them choose an animal like many teams have or a piece of clothing, e.g. the White Sox or Red Sox or what ever.

BronzeBuckaroo said...

The mascot is insulting. To me the image isn't much different than those racist cartoons coming out of Mexico showing black folk in stereotypical manner.

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Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.