ACLU sides with Redskins, deems trademark cancellation unconstitutional

The American Civil Liberties Union has come out in support of the Washington Redskins keeping their name, arguing that the U.S. governments decision to strip the NFL team of its trademark protection violates free speech rights granted by the First Amendment.

In an amicus brief filed in federal court on Thursday, the ACLU says the Redskins name is at least problematic, if not outright racist, but nevertheless protected under the U.S. Constitution.

Under the First Amendment, viewpoint-based regulation of private speech is never acceptable, regardless of the controversy of the viewpoint, reads the ACLUs legal brief, obtained by The Wall Street Journal. By scheduling the cancellation of the Redskins trademark because the word expresses a disparaging viewpoint, the government violated the First Amendment.

Pro-Football Inc., the company that owns the Redskins, filed a federal lawsuit in August challenging the U.S. Patent & Trademark Offices ruling, but the agency held that the Redskins name wasnt worthy of federal trademark protection because it disparages Native Americans, The Journal reported.

The ACLU brief called on the federal courts to end this formal system of viewpoint discrimination by issuing a narrow ruling that strikes down those portions of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act that prohibit registration of immoral, scandalous, or disparag[ing] marks.

ACLU staff attorney Esha Bhandari wrote a subsequent blog post defending the brief.

The Washington Redskins is a name that is offensive and perpetrates racism against Native Americans, she argued. 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.

The ACLU has a history of defending the speech rights of groups we disagree with, because the First Amendment doesnt protect only popular ideas. The Washington teams choice of name is unfortunate. They should be and are being pressured to change it. But it isnt governments role to pick and choose which viewpoints are acceptable and which are not, Ms. Bhandari said.

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ACLU sides with Redskins, deems trademark cancellation unconstitutional