LeBron James won’t shut up and dribble when he sees injustice in the world, which is why he’s joining Taco Bell’s effort to free Taco Tuesday.
Although most of us probably uttered the phrase “Taco Tuesday” before or even saw it advertised by a local restaurant, you may not have realized it was trademarked slogan. Taco John’s has owned “Taco Tuesday” in 49 states since 1989 and Gregory’s Bar has held the trademark in New Jersey since 1982. But Taco Bell and LeBron James are looking to change that. Last week, Taco Bell filed legal petitions to liberate the phrase “Taco Tuesday” for everyone to use and this week, they announced James is supporting their attempt to free the trademark.
“’Taco Tuesday’ is a tradition that everyone should be able to celebrate. All restaurants, all families, all businesses – everybody,” LeBron James said in a press release. “’Taco Tuesdays’ create opportunities that bring people together in so many ways, and it’s a celebration that nobody should own.”
According to the press release, James is also starring in a new ad titled “Taco Bleep” as part of the attempt to liberate “Taco Tuesday,” so be sure to look out for that campaign on your TV set beginning May 22.
Fighting for “Taco Tuesday” is not a new initiative for James. While LeBron now believes “nobody should own” the phrase, he previously attempted to trademark “Taco Tuesday” himself in 2019 after he shared videos of his family taco nights on social media. James’ efforts to trademark the phrase was denied with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office explaining “Taco Tuesday” is a “commonplace term.” Three years after learning he can’t own “Taco Tuesday,” LeBron is leaning into the “commonplace term” claim and joining Taco Bell in arguing nobody should own it.
All of this is going on while LeBron’s Los Angeles Lakers are on life support, down 3-0 to the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals. Barring what would be a historic comeback, with no NBA team ever overcoming a 3-0 deficit in a seven-game series, LeBron’s focus on “Taco Tuesday” in the middle of the NBA Playoffs might give Skip Bayless fuel to hilariously question his priorities.
Interestingly, there’s some fuel for Bayless to claim LeBron cares more about “Taco Tuesday” than he does winning. The Lakers are 1-4 during the NBA Playoffs this year when playing on Tuesday or Wednesday, presumably the day of or the day after LeBron indulged on tacos. Michael Jordan, meanwhile, was obsessed with McDonald’s, but didn’t let that get in the way of winning six NBA Championships.
