'Letting Go' of the Circle and Triangle As A Legal Mark

BOX 4 5 9 August September 1993

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A triangle, enclosed within a circle, has long been recognized as one symbol of Alcoholics Anonymous. Yet, both the triangle and the circle are among the earliest spiritual signs known to man. To ancient Egyptians, the triangle was a sign of creative intellect; to the Greeks, it meant wisdom. In general, it represents an upward yearning after higher knowledge or spiritual realm.

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At the International Convention celebrating AA.'s 20th anniversary, a circle enclosing a triangle was accepted as the symbol of Alcoholics Anonymous. The

circle," Bill told the A.A.s gathered in St. Louis, "stands for the whole world of A.A., and the triangle stands for A.A.'s Three Legacies of Recovery, Unity and Service. Within our wonderful new world, we have found freedom from our fatal obsession. . . . "

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The symbol was registered as an official A.A. mark in 1955, and was freely used by various A.A. entities, which worked very well for a wh1le. However, by the mid-1900s, there was a growing concern by the members; of the Fellowship on the use of the circle and triangle by outside organizations. In keeping with A.A.'s Sixth Tradition, that Alcoholics Anonymous" . . . ought never endorse, finance or lend the A.A. name to any related facility or outside enterprise . .. ", A.A. World Services began efforts in 1986 to prevent the use of the circle and triangle by outside entities, including novelty manufacturers, publishers and treatment facilities. The policy was undertaken with restraint, and only after all attempts at persuasion and conciliation had failed were legal actions considered. In fact, of approximately 170 unauthorized users contacted, only two suits were filed, both of which were settled at a very early stage.

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By early 1990, some members of the Fellowship seemed to be saying two things: "we want medallions without circle and triangle," while others were saying, "we don't want our symbol aligned with non A.A. purposes." The desire of some A.A. members for anniversary chips were addressed by the A.A. World Services and Grapevine Boards in October 1990, when they considered the possibility of producing medallions. The boards felt that tokens and medallions were unrelated to our primary purpose of carrying the A.A. message, and that the matter should be given a thorough airing at the Conference in order to seek a group conscience from the Fellowship. The essence of this decision was relayed to the 1991 General Service Conference in the A.A.W.S. Board's report.

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The 1992 General Service Conference began to confront the dilemma by hearing presentations on why we should or should not produce medallions, and the responsibility of A.A.W.S. to protect our trademarks and copyrights from uses that might suggest affiliation with outside sources.

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The result was a Conference Advisory Action for the General Service Board to undertake a feasibility study on the possible method by which sobriety chips might be made available to the Fellowship, followed by a report to an ad hoc committee of1993 Conference delegates.

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Following lengthy considerations, the ad hoc committee presented their report and recommendations to the 1993 Conference. After discussion, the Conference approved two of five recommendations that:?1) the use of sobriety chips/medallions is a matter of local autonomy and not one on which the Conference should record a definite position; and 2) it is not appropriate for A.A. World Services or the Grapevine to produce or license the production of sobriety chips/medallions.

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Among the considerations in the ad hoc committee's report were the implications of continuing to protect A.A.'s trademarks from use by outside organizations through legal means.

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Coincidentally, the A.A.W.S. Board had begun to consider recent developments, culminating in recognition that the prospects of increasingly costly and lengthy litigation, the uncertainty of success, and the diversions from AA.'s primary purpose were too great to justify continuing the protection effort of the circle and triangle.

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During the post-Conference meeting of the General Service Board, the trustees accepted A.A.W.S.'s recommendation to discontinue protecting the circle and triangle symbol as one of our registered marks.

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By early June, the General Service Board reached substantial unanimity in support of A.A.W.S.'s statement that, consistent with our original purpose to avoid the suggestion of association or affiliation with outside goods and services, Alcoholics Anonymous World Service, Inc. will phase out the "official" or "legal" use of the circle and triangle symbol. AA.W.S. will continue to resist unauthorized use of our other marks and any attempts to publish A.A. literature without permission.

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The triangle within a circle will, of course, always have a special meaning in the hearts and minds of A.A.s, in a symbolic sense, just as do the Serenity Prayer and slogans, which have never had any official status.

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BUT FOR THE GRACE OF GOD!!!

KEEP COMING BACK AND STAY!!!

ONE DAY AT A TIME!!!

HEAR, LISTEN, READ, AND LEARN!!!

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SET ASIDE PRAYER

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DEAR GOD,

PLEASE SET ASIDE EVERYTHING I THINK I KNOW

ABOUT MYSELF, THIS BOOK, MY DISEASE, THESE STEPS,

AND ESPECIALLY ABOUT YOU DEAR GOD

SO THAT I MIGHT HAVE AN OPEN MIND AND A NEW

EXPERIENCE WITH ALL THESE THINGS

PLEASE HELP ME TO SEE THE TRUTH

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"Honest with ourselves & others gets us sober, but it is tolerance that keeps us that way." –?Bill W

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“Of far more importance was the fact that he was the first living human with whom I had ever talked, who knew what he was talking about in regard to alcoholism from actual experience. In other words, he spoke my language.” –?Dr. Bob

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Remember the four questions,

Is it true or false?

Is it right or wrong?

How will this affect the other fellow?

Is it ugly or beautiful?

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Answering these queries every day with absolute integrity, and following the dictates of those answers one day at a time, will surely lead us well on our journey toward absorbing and applying the Absolutes. –?Dr. Bob

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Congratulations to the thousands of A.A.’s gathered at Miami ... on behalf of the Post Office Dept. I want to express our thanks for the cooperation willingly given by the many local AA groups to our program for recovery installed in Post Offices nationwide. Without this cooperation our efforts to assist employees with a drinking problem could not succ?ed.?– Winton M. Blount Postmaster General

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I shall never forget that first meeting in my office, late one afternoon fifteen years ago, and the evening we then spent together. And I shall always be grateful to my friend who brought Bill and me together on that memorable afternoon and evening, for in some mysterious way I was ready for Bill’s message. I learned something then from Bill for which all of my life up to then seems to have been a kind of preparation. What Bill was getting through to me was the then-startling fact that in A.A., when men cease to drink by applying the Twelve Steps to their lives, they are in effect beginning to live on a spiritual basis. And it struck me, as a nonalcoholic, that A.A. was a way of life for me, too, and for countless others like me who had never sought escape in a bottle or in those other refuges to which men turn from the pressures of a materialistic world.?(Bernard B Smith – Chairman AA GSB)

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Don’t work with me if you don’t want what I had

If you want what I had, you have to do what I did

If you don’t, don’t do what I did?(Mark H)

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Construction References

1. Bedrock:-Personal Admission of Powerlessness – 12&12, Page-21:3

2. Foundation:-Complete Willingness – BB, Page-12:4

3. Cement:-? Common peril & ? Common Solution – BB, Page-17:3

4. Cornerstone:-Willing to believe there is a Power greater than you – BB, Pg-47:2

5. Keystone:-God is going to be our director – BB, Page-62:3

6. Foundation Stone:-Complete Willingness to help others – BB, Page-97:1

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You can’t lead where you haven’t been.

You can’t teach what you haven’t learned.

You can’t be what you are not.

And you damn sure can’t give what you ain’t got!

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We recover by the Steps we take, not the meetings we make!!!

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If you are going to be a sponsor….Be a good one!!!