---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Tomasz W. Kozlowski <tomasz(a)twkozlowski.net>
Date: 21 September 2013 17:16
Subject: [Wikimedia-l] It's time to reclaim the community logo
To: wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Hello community,
this is to inform you that in response to the trademarking of the
Wikimedia community logo[1], created in 2006 by Artur “WarX”
Fijałkowski, which was discussed on this mailing list[2] as well as on
Meta[3] back in March, a small group of community members—Artur,
myself, Federico Leva (Nemo) and John Vandenberg—have initiated a
formal process of opposition against the registration of the trademark
by the Foundation in order to *reclaim the logo* for unrestricted use
by the community.
We appreciate the Foundation’s protection of the other trademarks they
have registered so far, including the logos of Wikipedia, Wikisource
and some other sister projects. In the case of the community logo,
however, it is our belief that the Foundation’s actions are exactly
opposite to what the community logo stands for and contradict the
purpose behind its very existence.
We would like to make it clear that it is not our intention to damage
anyone; our actions are a challenge against what we perceive as
unilateral declaration of ownership of an asset that has always
belonged to the wider community, and not to one or another
organisation that is part of the movement. By formally opposing the
registration of the trademark we hope to ensure the history of this
logo is not disregarded, and we wish to protect the community against
unnecessary bureaucracy and, to use another quote, let “groups who do
not purport to represent the WMF”[4] to continue to be able to freely
associate with a logo that has been part of their identity for so
long.
We also want to note that this is in no way a legal action against the
Foundation, but a simple notice of opposition against the registration
of the logo in the European Union. If we assume good faith, we can
only be confident that the WMF, having now a formal occasion, will
withdraw its registration of the logo rather than continue using
movement resources to force the community into lengthy, expensive
proceedings.
We invite all community members interested in this issue to express
their opinions at:
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Community_Logo/Reclaim_the_Logo
If any of you would like to help us in any way (covering the costs of
the opposition, promoting the discussion, etc.), please feel free to
contact us off–list.
Artur Fijalkowski (WarX)
Tomasz Kozlowski (odder)
Federico Leva (Nemo)
John Vandenberg (jayvdb)
== References ==
* [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikimedia_Community_Logo.svg
* [2]
https://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimedia-l/2013-March/124715.html
* [3] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Community_Logo
* [4]
http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikimedia-l/2013-March/124730.html
