'You’re Not Wrong, You're Just an A**hole'

[PoliticAverse]

By Esha Bhandari, Staff Attorney, ACLU Speech, Privacy and Technology Project at 12:30pm

The Washington Redskins is a name that is offensive and perpetuates racism against Native Americans. Should it be changed? Yes. But should the government get to make that call? As we told a federal district court yesterday, the answer is no, because the First Amendment protects against government interference in private speech.

Nevertheless, the government has indeed weighed in. Last June, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office cancelled the football team's federally registered trademark, which it deemed disparaging to Native Americans. We don't disagree with that judgment, but the government should not be able to decide what types of speech are forbidden – even when the speech in question reflects viewpoints we all agree are repellent.

The team took the case to court, and the ACLU filed an amicus brief yesterday, alongside the ACLU of Virginia and NYU Tech Law & Policy clinic, arguing that the government cannot constitutionally deny trademark benefits on the basis of speech that it disagrees with or finds controversial. Our brief is on behalf of the First Amendment, not the Redskins. The ACLU has joined the loud chorus of people and groups calling on the team to change its name (we side with the Dude from "The Big Lebowski" on this one), but the government should not have the power to make decisions about which trademarks are too "immoral," "scandalous," or "disparaging" to be given trademark protection.

Read the rest at: https://www.aclu.org/blog/free-speech/youre-not-wrong-youre-just-ahole

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

1. ACLU is right, owner of team needs to be shamed into changing, nice if the fans refused to go

[Salviati]

4. Instead of just refusing to use the name...

... the media should just exclusively refer to them as the Washington Assholes until they change it. Though one does run the risk of confusion with House Republicans.

[fasttense]

5. I like your idea of referring to them as

the Washington Assholes until they change to a less offensive name.Corporate media wont care though.

[Fuddnik]

6. They should name them after a species with a large habitat in Washington.

Something like the Washington Polecats.

[tularetom]

2. The team owner is a complete douchebag with a Napoleon complex (He's about 4"10" tall)

He knows frickin well everybody wants him to change the team name and he refuses to do it just to be a dick.

[oldlib2]

3. Morally Reponsible

teams changed their names years ago. Stanford University did not hesitate to change their team name from"Indians" to "Cardinals" without additional pressure. The Washington Redskin operation is both immoral and irresponsible for not making a change.

[Archae]

7. Asinine stubborness is a tradition in the Washington Redskins.

They were the last NFL franchise to let black players in.
And that was only AFTER the government said they couldn't play in government-paid for stadiums, like their own.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Redskins#Integration_controversy

[geek tragedy]

8. Nonsense. Trademarks are themselves a restriction on free speech.

They are a governmentally-enforced monopoly on the use of speech.

The ACLU helped bring us Citizens United--this is another case where their absolutism is foolish.

[AverageJoe90]

9. As distasteful as the name "Redskins" really is....

Allowing the government to have that kind of power *could* potentially backfire on us, especially if there was a Republican in the White House.