The Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce is urging the reform of American trademark and patent laws and reiterating calls for a boycott of a Chicago fast-food chain that trademarked the words “Aloha Poke.”

“We all have a right to prosper from the fruits of our labor, but no one has the right to steal what is not theirs,” said chamber President Joe Lapilio in a news release.

The pro-business organization said it “understands the importance of lawful trademarks to business and industry,” but in this case it is improper to prohibit the use of the Hawaiian language for the benefit of a single company.

Nearly 200 protesters rallied in Chicago on Monday against Aloha Poke Co. after it sent threatening letters to companies bearing similar names. At least a couple of small businesses on the mainland that received cease-and-desist letters have re-branded their shops to avoid litigation.

“At the end of the day, trademark protection hinges on public perception,” he said. “We call on all who cherish this country’s First Nations peoples and the notion of cultural integrity and fair play in the marketplace to boycott each and every retail location of the Chi- cago-based Aloha Poke Co. franchise and send a message to all who participate in the stream of commerce that cultural appropriation is not just morally wrong but is also economically untenable.”

The first person to use a trademark — not the first person to register it — has priority for ownership, he said. Several Hawaii and mainland poke shops say they were open before the Chicago restaurant even registered the trademark in 2016.

The protests, meant to raise awareness of “an egregious example of cultural misappropriation,” are scheduled to run through today. Activists hope to compel the Chicago-based company, which operates seven fast-food poke restaurants in the metropolitan area, to rescind its trademark, retract its cease-and-desist letters and issue a “true apology to the Native Hawaiian people.” Besides putting a “financial strain on their operations,” the groups said they are also pursuing legal action against the fast-food chain.

Aloha Poke Co. hasn’t responded to the protesters’ petition for a face-to-face meeting with executives. An online petition has garnered nearly 169,000 signatures demanding the company remove the words “Aloha” and “Poke” from the Chicago restaurant’s name.

“While, at first glance, this heavy-handed trademark issue is narrowly focused on a single bad-actor, the Aloha Poke Co. of Chicago, we strongly believe that the greater issue is to be taken up with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and a system that has, for generations, inadequately addressed the commercialization and exploitation of Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge and culture,” Lapilio said.