California driver fights DMV to keep IAMISIS license plate

A California driver named Isis Wharton is challenging the state Department of Motor Vehicles’ request to change a vanity plate that reads IAMISIS, arguing it reflects her name and heritage rather than support for a terrorist organization. The DMV said last week that the configuration could be misread as the acronym for the Islamic State and asked her to replace it. Wharton, 26, says she has had permission to use the plate since 2022 and has renewed it annually without issue.

Wharton told ABC-10 that she was surprised by the request and believes her plate reflects her given name, not endorsement of extremism. She says her name predates the terrorist group and comes from the Egyptian goddess Isis, whom she associates with healing and motherhood. She says she did not intend any offense and that the plate is a personal expression rather than a political statement.

The California DMV’s policy allows rejecting plate configurations that may carry connotations offensive to good taste and decency or could be misleading. The agency has said language and symbols can hold different meanings across cultures and communities, and it will consider context in evaluating any request involving IAMISIS. The department also noted that ISIS’s designation as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department in 2004 remains a factor in public discussions, though it does not say IAMISIS is automatically prohibited. The DMV has said it will tell applicants whether a plate is approved or not and that applicants may appeal decisions within set timelines.

Wharton learned of the DMV’s concerns after renewing the plate a few months ago. She said she was told to appeal by Sept. 25 or the DMV would issue new plates with a neutral configuration. She described feeling confused and hurt by the turn of events, noting she had not faced an issue during her previous renewals and that she believed the process would be straightforward.

The case fits within a broader pattern of scrutiny over personalized plates, where language and symbols can carry multiple meanings. DMV officials say plates may be rejected for reasons including the potential to incite violence or reflect a gang affiliation, and they emphasize that context matters. California’s policy requires a balance between personal expression and public safety or tolerance considerations.

Wharton said she intends to pursue the appeal to preserve the plate for now. She has not indicated whether she will alter the configuration or seek a different arrangement if the DMV ultimately declines IAMISIS. Officials said any final decision will depend on a review of the plate’s full configuration and the context in which it is presented, but they did not indicate a timetable for a final ruling.

The dispute underscores how even seemingly harmless personal identifiers can collide with national security concerns and cultural sensitivities. The DMV’s stance is that while some names or phrases may be benign in one context, they can carry different implications in another. The department’s guidance says that language and symbols can evoke varied interpretations across communities, and that policy aims to prevent misinterpretation or offense while recognizing individuals’ rights to personal identifiers. The outcome of Wharton’s appeal remains pending as of this writing.