Odd name changes

Law professor Eugene Volokh rounds up some cases where courts ruled on unusual name changes (like Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii).

Misteri N***er, second “i” silent. No, said the California Court of Appeal in 1992, because it constitutes “fighting words”: “[I]f a man asks appellant his name and he answers ‘Mister N***er,’ the man might think appellant was calling him ‘Mister N***er.’ Moreover, third persons, including children hearing the epithet, may be embarrassed, shocked or offended by simply hearing the word.

Ah, the old “them’s fightin’ words” argument.

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