Trademark law is controlled by the federal Lanham Trademark Act.14 That act bars registration of trademarks that disparage a group or bring it into contempt or disrepute. In the past, the trademark office has denied marks, such as "Stop the Islamization of America" and "Slants," on the basis that the former would be viewed by many as disparaging Muslims and the later as disparaging Asian-Americans.15

However, what we view as disparaging changes as societal views change. In 1966, the Washington Redskins National Football team was issued a trademark for "Redskins,"16 but in 2014, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board declared that the team name of the NFL's Washington Redskins was "a racial slur."17 This action does not prevent the team from continuing to use the Redskins name. However, the team can no longer use trademark protections to prevent others from making or selling goods with the team logo on them. This could have dire financial consequences for the team and the NFL. The team has announced its intent to appeal the Board's decision in federal court. With respect to the provision in the copyright law that prohibits granting trademarks to words and phrases that "disparage a group or bring it into contempt or disrepute," what arguments could an attorney make either supporting or opposing the use of "Redskins"?