Drag queen Pattie Gonia calls Patagonia lawsuit attempt to 'erase an activist'
Drag queen Pattie Gonia is speaking out amid an ongoing legal battle with Patagonia, the massively popular outdoor apparel brand.
Pattie Gonia, born Wyn Wile, is calling on the company to drop its trademark infringement lawsuit, likening it to "a corporation trying to erase an activist."
"What they're actually trying to do is take away my name permanently and threaten me with more than $1M million dollars in legal fees," Pattie Gonia recently wrote on Instagram.
Patagonia, the California-based, outdoor apparel brand, first filed suit against Wile in January of this year after the drag queen applied to trademark "Pattie Gonia."
In its suit, the company accused the entertainer of selling Pattie Gonia merchandise, including products with what it describes as similar designs to the company's own logos, which the company says has confused consumers and is not in line with a 2022 agreement the performer made with the company.
The clothing company alleges the entertainer's trademark application "reflects Pattie Gonia’s departure from discrete use of a persona to engage in activism and confirms Defendants’ intent instead to launch a wide-ranging commercial enterprise under the PATTIE GONIA brand."
Among other complaints, the lawsuit accuses Wile of trademark infringement and federal dilution of its famous mark.
In the suit, Patagonia is seeking damages of $1 plus attorneys' fees as well as an order blocking the performer's use of the Pattie Gonia trademark.
In a January statement, around the time the lawsuit was filed, the company said it wished "we didn’t have to do this."
The company said the entertainer's attempt to trademark the brand "Pattie Gonia" would "directly overlap with the work we do and the products we provide – for which we have longstanding rights and trademark registrations."
Pattie Gonia, who champions climate activism, claims that the lawsuit, if successful, "would take away not only my activism and my career, but also the livelihoods of the team I employ."
The performer said the lawsuit has left only two choices: erasing "my name, my advocacy, my community, and everyone I employ" or fighting.
"I'm fighting, and I'm inviting you to join me in a simple call to action: Patagonia, drop the lawsuit," the performer said.
Pattie Gonia acknowledged entering into an agreement with the company in 2022 but said "that wasn't a broad agreement about my future."
The entertainer said filing the trademark application was about protecting the Pattie Gonia likeness from anyone else who may want to use it, "not because of Patagonia."
The performer also claimed that the apparel company "chose this exact moment, the height of anti-LGBTQ+ politics and attacks on the environment, to sue me."
Pattie Gonia also shared a video mirroring the written statement posted online.
According to an open letter to the company posted on Pattie Gonia's website, the performer writes that once the lawsuit was filed, "I started immediately pursuing an amicable settlement."
The letter continues, "This lawsuit serves no good purpose. Let’s make peace and get back to our common love of the planet including our namesake region in South America named Patagonia."
Patagonia shared a statement of its own on Wednesday, stating the company had attempted to "find a path forward that would allow Pattie Gonia to continue their work while also protecting the Patagonia trademark. "
The statement continued, "Unfortunately, we could not reach an agreement."
The clothing brand said it has a "responsibility" to protect the trademark.
The company said the lawsuit was not for "financial gain."
"The last thing we wanted was a legal fight with someone who shares our values, but we must protect our business and employees," the statement finished.
ABC News has reached out to Pattie Gonia and Patagonia for further comment.
