Province issues warning to those who use logo in satirical social media posts

The province has issued a warning to people who use the Saskatchewan government logo in satirical social media posts.

The province has issued a warning to people who use the Saskatchewan government logo in satirical social media posts.

It has become a well-known government slogan, “Growth That Works for Everyone.” When Iain MacDonald used the logo in a social media post critical of the government, he received a cease and desist notice from the government.

“I created essentially a sarcastic meme or joke image about ‘Growth That Works for Everyone’ when clearly it doesn’t and hasn’t been,” he said.

The government notice said, “Attention Iain, the stylized wheat sheaf logos you have used in this post are copyrighted by the Government of Saskatchewan.” It goes on to say, “We are demanding that you cease and desist and remove them.”

MacDonald complied but encouraged others to join in with posts of their own.

“It exploded with people taking it on and retweeting the originals and retweeting that and creating their own,” he said.

The NDP believe the government has no legal grounds for issuing a cease and desist request.