The California-based Dykes on Bikes, a self-described group of “lesbian motorcycle riders,” has roared to the support of an Asian-American band called The Slants in a high-profile Supreme Court case about the ability to trademark offensive names.

Formally entitled the San Francisco Dykes on Bikes Motorcycle Contingent Inc., the group is riding alongside the likes of the Washington Redskins football team and the conservative U.S. Chamber of Commerce in the fast-approaching case. The outcome could topple part of a 71-year-old law, remove some speech restrictions and open the doors to more incendiary trademarks.

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San Francisco-based attorney Mark A. Lemley, in the brief for Dykes on Bikes, noted that the organization has gone through a “costly, time-consuming and ultimately only partially successful” trademark effort since 2003. The group’s application at the trademark office has been suspended until the court rules on The Slants’ challenge.

“It has at various points found both that the term ‘dyke’ is a disparaging term for lesbians and, conversely, that the term ‘dyke’ is not a disparaging term,” Lemley wrote.