The chapter by Chelsea Vowel “Icewine, Roquefort Cheese, and the Navajo Nation” published in Indigenous Writes in 2016 maintains that modern society disregards the protection of indigenous intellectual properties by promoting counterfeits. The author purposes to describe how non-natives take advantage of the natives’ quality products without acknowledging the inventor; she further discusses the possible reasons for the problem’s occurrence and provides the possible solutions to it.
The writer uses the case of icewine to illustrate the extent of intellectual property rights violations in Canada. Vowel (2016) argues that fake icewine, particularly from China, dominates the market despite the relevant policies and regulatory agencies existing. Intellectual property protection by assigning peculiar names has existed for centuries, and it has since worked best for liquor and cheese brands, where the commodities bear the origin details. An equivalent to appellation is the application of trademarks in the United States, which safeguard the brand, but not the terroir. Regardless, appellation and trademarks prohibit the misuse of the commodity identities. A typical example of using such protection techniques is the utilization of “Navajo” for products from the Navajo nation. However, the Navajo have battled with Urban Outfitters through lawsuits over trademark contraventions. Unique and legally-protected labels such as icewine and Navajo depict the product’s quality and guide the buyers appropriately. Nonetheless, fakers are challenging the effectiveness of trademarks resulting in massive revenue loss.
The author is concerned with how society fails to enforce intellectual property legislation, primarily those that are culture-based. Consequently, the community minimally resprespectsigenous intellectual properties, and consumers should be responsible for purchasing legitimate indigenous goods to support genuine pioneers. Empowering indigenous people by safeguarding their produce has appeared controversial since most non-natives view the involved laws as discriminatory, forcing them to devise ways of associating their commodities with the Natives or transfer the trademark infringement responsibility to others.
Reference
Vowel, C. (2016). Icewine, Roquefort cheese, and the Navajo Nation. In Indigenous writes A guide to first nations, Métis, and Inuit Issues in Canada (pp. 100–104). Portage & Main Press.