A dispute over shirts bearing the words “Lest We Forget” has caused a stir among members of the Wagga Wagga RSL Bowling Club, with some veterans claiming they have been told to take them off or risk being barred from playing.
The blue polo shirts, featuring a military-themed design and the phrase “Lest We Forget,” were reportedly approved when first introduced for social members. According to club member David Ashford, he and others were shocked to be told they could no longer wear them on the green.
“If we wear our shirts, we are not allowed to bowl,” Mr Ashford told radio station 2GB. “We wore them last Anzac Day and nobody said anything. We are disgusted by the decision.”
Some members claim the club justified the move by citing a trademark on the phrase. However, the national body has denied it ordered any ban.
“This is the first time RSL Australia has been made aware of this matter and we have not placed any restrictions on its use by the Wagga Wagga RSL club,” the organisation said in a statement.
2GB presenter Ben Fordham suggested there may be internal politics at play. “It may well be a trademark, but they are not enforcing it,” he said. “It sounds like someone is telling lies at the Wagga RSL Bowling Club. My advice to those involved, just keep on wearing the shirts.”
While the RSL sub-branch, the RSL club, and the RSL bowling club share a name, they are separate entities, and it remains unclear who initiated the directive.
Public backlash
The issue has sparked heated debate online, with many criticising the decision:
“Who banned the shirt? The RSL Club or the sub-branch?” asked one commenter, noting confusion over which body had authority.
Another said, “The reporter literally says it was the bowling club. What they didn’t point out is the club, sub-branch, and bowling club are three different things.”
“It was a shirt for social members and was approved at the time,” another wrote. “Why is it now a problem to wear them at the very place they represent?”
One person pointed out, “Lest We Forget is not trademarked, but Anzac is. Even Woolworths had to remove an ad using the word Anzac.”
Others called for stronger action: “People should black ban the club, it’s a disgrace against our diggers” and “Vote the board out. Shame on the lot of them.”
Several argued the shirts should be celebrated, not banned: “The club wouldn’t be there if these men and women didn’t do what they did. It’s called respect” and “Wear it with pride. You pay your fees to bowl.”
The Wagga Wagga RSL Bowling Club has yet to publicly clarify its position on the shirts, leaving the dispute unresolved.
The word “ANZAC” is not trademarked. It’s the acronym for Australia, New Zealand Army Corps. We have ANZAC Day. We have ANZAC Biscuits, we have ANZAC Veterans. But the word is not trademarked. Woolworths were told to pull that advert in 2015 because it was in poor taste, not because the word is trademarked. They used the slogan “Fresh in our memories”, which prompted consumer backlash, and rightly so. No multinational company should be profiting from a historical event like that. Very poor taste, not a trademark issue.
There are many in our nation who have never experienced the realities of war, and thus they don’t want to be reminded of war by seeing LEST WE FORGET. They take their life of freedom as a right, and ignore the realities of the price that fellow citizens paid so that they can follow a lifestyle that would have been denied them if the war had been lost.