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FedEx may be dragged into Redskins name spat
The company sponsors the team's home field, which is already leading to headaches for CEO Fred Smith.

By Rob Garver, The Fiscal Times

The Washington Redskins will likely spend the next year or more appealing a recent ruling by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revoking the team's trademarks on the grounds that they are disparaging to Native Americans. But while the team fights it out in the courtroom, the next stage of the battle may we waged in the boardroom.

It seems unlikely, given the First Amendment, that any federal legal authority will ever be able to truly force the Washington Redskins to change their name to something that isn't racially offensive to Native Americans. But legal coercion isn't the only kind of coercion, and team owner Dan Snyder's vow that the team will "never" change its name might not hold up if it becomes a financial burden rather than just a political one.

Activists who have been unable to get the team to bend to moral pressure are now trying to turn up the financial pressure, and their prime target is shipping giant Federal Express (FDX). The Redskins play on FedExField outside of Washington, and the company pays the team millions of dollars a year for the naming rights to the high-visibility venue.

Earlier this year, a group of investors filed a request with FedEx to respond to their concerns about the "reputational damage" done to the company by its continued association with the team. After last week's USPTO ruling, activists redoubled their pressure, asking that the company address the issue at the annual shareholders meeting in September.

FedEx has officially tried to keep out of the dispute, with a spokesperson telling the Associated Press "It's not our place to have a position on the name."

However, it's a little bit difficult for the company to profess complete neutrality when its CEO, Fred Smith, is also part of the Redskins management group...

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