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SALT LAKE CITY — Apparently, it's not easy to go by the name ISIS these days.
Headlines involving terrorists have led to unintended consequences for businesses and others in Utah and across the country.
Perhaps none have felt the sting more than Isis Books & Gifts in Englewood, Colorado, which has been vandalized a handful of times over the past year.
Co-owner Jeff Harrison suspects confusion over the store's name is contributing. It looks like the acronym for the Islamic State terrorists.
"This latest one, we feel like was probably related to the fact the Paris bombing happened on Friday and we came in on Saturday morning and found our sign smashed up," Harrison said.
Turns out, the confusion is fairly common.
Last month, members of the Temple of Isis Utah got some unexpected responses at the Parliament of the World's Religions held in Salt Lake City.
"We had one young man come up to us and say, 'Isis!? Why are you here? What's that about?'" Temple of Isis director deTraci Regula said.
The group views the goddess Isis as the "divine feminine," the female face of God who has answered worshippers' prayers for thousands of years.
"What we do is the most opposite thing to any terrorist group imaginable," Regula said. "We celebrate love and healing, the rights of women and children, and the right of everyone to live in peace."
For Nancy Ayers, ISIS stands for Industrial Supplies Integrity Service. It's the name of her Utah-based small business, ISIS Distributing Inc.
"They lovingly call me 'the terrorist' — some of my accounts," Ayers said.
Ayers said the joke isn't funny anymore after the recent attacks in Paris.
She said she initially came up with the name to represent the ethical approach to her business, as well as the empowerment of women.
Ayers has been raising seven children while running the company.
The business owner said friends and others have told her she should change the name, an idea she still rejects.
"Why would I do that?" Ayers said. "Because who knows what name I'm going to choose next."
On a positive note, Ayers said people are now pronouncing her business correctly. She said people used to call it "iss-iss" or "i-5-i-5."
She said she hopes people will show some understanding.
"I don't expect people to know Greek mythology — that may be a little of a high expectation," Ayers said. "I would expect people not to make a judgment call."
Harrison also said he did not plan to change his bookstore's name.
"There's a possibility of that, but really want to stick with the name because of what the actual meaning of the name is — the actual love and healing and positive vibe of the name," he explained. "We feel like it's important to stick with it and not give into mania and ignorance over a group that really has nothing at all to do with the goddess Isis."
The Islamic State terror group has some identity issues of its own, being referred to as ISIS, ISIL and Daesh by different governments and politicians.
"It's an artificial acronym," Regula said. "Certainly the terrorists don't want to be called ISIS, either. It's something that has been imposed by a translation of the Arabic name into English letters that are easy for newscasters to say."
Regula suggested the group should be called something different.
"It's important for all peace-loving people to really support that this group is called by something other than ISIS," Regula said.
