Association fights against Nazi codes - Action against right-wing symbols in shirt-shops successful
Due to a brand rights action by the association "Loud against Nazis," shirts, hoodies, and other clothing with certain far-right abbreviations, according to the association's statements, are hardly offered in relevant online shops anymore. The major Nazi shop operators removed the articles immediately after the first press reports, stated Verein Chef Jörn Menge of the German Press Agency in Hamburg.
Far-right Shops sign Understanding Statements
"Contrary to expectations, we encountered cooperative shopkeepers and shop owners from the far-right scene, who, following usual business practices - which is common in all industries - quickly sent their cease-and-desist declarations to the association 'Loud against Nazis.' The campaign is more than a success, Menge added further.
In case of contract breach
In October 2023, the association presented the idea: "Loud against Nazis" secures the trademark for far-right codes such as VTR LND (which stands for Fatherland) or eness (which stands for the abbreviation for National Socialism, NS). This way, shirts, hoodies, and Co. with these codes cannot be sold anymore without it being expensive. All known shops that sell clothing with these codes must sign a cease-and-desist declaration. If the sellers and shop owners disregard this and continue selling clothing with these prints, legal action may ensue. This is associated with high costs.
"We aim to register ten more Nazi codes at the European Patent Office as a trademark this year." The registration of a trademark costs approximately 1,600 Euros, according to the given information. Numerous donors and donors have already sent this amount to the association, as Menge said. More than 70,000 Euros have already been collected.
Approximately 100 unregistered, unprotected codes in the far-right scene
The goal of the action is to remove Nazi bestsellers from the market, prevent right-wing propaganda, reduce the sales of relevant shops, and create unrest in the scene. In total, there are roughly 100 of these relevant codes that have not been trademark-protected so far, stated Menge.
The association "Loud against Nazis" has existed since 2008. With targeted actions, it tries to disrupt the far-right scene and prevent the dissemination of its messages.
- The association "Loud against Nazis" successfully targeted far-right abbreviations such as VTR LND and eness (NS), which are associated with National Socialism, through a brand rights action.
- The German Press Agency reported that major Nazi shop operators swiftly removed items with the controversial abbreviations from their online stores following the association's press release.
- The right-wing scene in Hamburg was shocked when they learned that the use of certain abbreviations (like VTR LND and eness) for clothing items could result in legal action and high costs.
- The association is planning to register an additional ten Nazi codes as trademarks at the European Patent Office, aiming to eliminate all unprotected codes in the far-right scene.
