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Boston Globe
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Native American inmate secures right to wear religious Apache headband in settlement with R.I. prisons
Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up 'This case reflects a fundamental principle: People in prison may lose their liberty but they cannot be deprived of their humanity, and the free exercise of religion is a basic human right,' Jared Goldstein, director of the litigation clinic, said in a statement. Related : Advertisement According to the lawsuit, Pawochawog-Mequinosh was raised in the spiritual tradition of the White Mountain Apache Tribe, and the headband 'expresses his sincere religious beliefs arising from the Apache tradition.' While Muslim and Jewish prisoners were allowed to wear kufis and yarmulkes, the Department of Corrections 'had repeatedly denied Wolf's requests for a headband on the grounds that his religion was designated as 'Pagan/Wiccan' in RIDOC's data management system,' the ACLU said. Advertisement 'RIDOC's system does not include a religious designation for adherents of Native American religious traditions,' the ACLU said. The lawsuit was filed under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, 'which bars states from imposing any substantial burden on a prisoner's exercise of religion unless it furthers a compelling interest and is the least restrictive means available,' the ACLU said. In a statement, the state Department of Corrections said the settlement 'will result in the dismissal' of the lawsuit with 'no fault attributed to RIDOC.' 'The wearing of headbands and access to various religious items without reasonable and legally permissible limitations raises several security concerns with RIDOC's facilities, as these items can be repurposed in ways that could present a safety risk to staff and the incarcerated population,' the department said. 'However, an agreement was reached which allows RIDOC to maintain security and minimize safety risks while permitting the Plaintiff to wear an approved headband and access approved items in accordance with his religious beliefs and applicable policies.' Department of Corrections Director Wayne T. Salisbury Jr. said the agency believes in 'maintaining a constitutional and balanced approach to security when enacting protocols and procedures.' 'I am pleased we were able to work with our counterparts to resolve this matter in a way that both acknowledges the constitutional rights of our population and preserves our efforts to maintain safety in our secure facilities,' Salisbury said in a statement. Pawochawog-Mequinosh was formerly known as Brian Brownell and legally changed his name in 2022, according to the ACLU. Pawochawog-Mequinosh received his name from an Apache elder when he was a child, and 'changing his legal name was important to him because it connected him to his 'spirituality, religion, and history,'' the organization said. Advertisement Christopher Gavin can be reached at
New York Times
20-02-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Are Birkenstocks a Work of Art? A German Court Says No.
Depending on whom you ask, Birkenstock's wide-set, corky sandals might be frumpy, or chic, or gauche or the ultimate comfort shoe. What they cannot be called though, at least according to the German high court, is a work of art. On Thursday, the federal court of justice in Karlsruhe, Germany, ruled that Birkenstocks were not 'copyrighted works of applied art,' making it harder for the 251-year-old German shoemaker to combat the widespread sale of duplicates of its sandals across the internet. 'For copyright protection to apply, there must be such a degree of design that the product displays some individuality,' the court wrote in its decision. Birkenstock's sandals may be iconic enough for a 'Barbie' movie cameo, but they do not display enough individuality for the German judiciary. The case has been winding its way through the court system for years, as Birkenstock sought to copyright four of its orthopedic-rooted slip-ons: the Madrid, Arizona, Boston and Gizeh, which have inspired cheaper imitations. 'The decisions by the BGH constitute a missed opportunity for copyright protection in Germany,' Jochen Gutzy, Birkenstock's chief communications officer, wrote in a statement, using the German acronym for the court. In spite of the ruling, he continued, the company would 'continue to take tough action against copycats who think they can make money from other people's creative ideas and inventions.' In legal filings, Birkenstock singled out the German retailers Tchibo and as well as the Danish company Bestseller, as purveyors of Birkenstock look-alikes. Yet the network of copycat clogs is vast. On Amazon, shoppers can find convincing dupes of the brand's two-strap Arizona model and potato-shaped closed-toe Boston clogs. These shoes — clones to the naked eye — sell for as low as $22, far less than $135, the cost of a pair of suede Arizona Birkenstocks. At the heart of the ruling, according to legal experts, was the initial spark that led to the formation of Birkenstock's easy-on-the-arches shoes. 'In this case, the court found that while Birkenstock's sandals are undeniably iconic, their design is largely driven by ergonomic and orthopedic needs, not creative expression,' said Jared Goldstein, a lawyer and expert in footwear legal entanglements who coauthored the book 'Sneaker Law.' To be sure, Birkenstock has never shied away from its podiatric roots. Its website recounts how when Birkenstock introduced the single-strapped 'Original Birkenstock-Footbed Sandal' (later renamed the Madrid and still in the brand's product line) in the 1960s, Karl Birkenstock 'made doctors his partners in spreading the word about the shoe.' Today, the company's public image has evolved past its orthopedic origins. Over the last decade in particular, its sandals and clogs, once associated with patchouli-drenched hippies, have been recast as fetching objects of desire. Fashion houses like Valentino, Jil Sander and Dior have paired with the German cobbler, resulting in high-price collaborative designs. Along the way, the brand has rocketed from a family-run enterprise to a publicly listed corporation. In 2021, L Catterton, a private equity group with ties to the French luxury magnate Bernard Arnault, became the majority owner of Birkenstock. Two years later, Birkenstock went public on the New York Stock Exchange, raising $1.48 billion in its initial public offering. Legal experts say the case will have implications not just for Birkenstock but for the German footwear market overall. Matthias Wurm, the head of corporate law at the German firm Schlun & Elseven, who was not involved in the case, said the ruling 'opened the floodgate for imitators,' who now have legal cover to pump out their own cork-and-latex footbed shoes. 'The federal court's ruling has the tragic result that Birkenstock sandals can be imitated by copycats on German soil,' Dr. Wurm said. 'Birkenstock is likely to face a lot of competition in the future.'
