
In the United States, the third Monday of January is Martin Luther King Jr.® Day. Due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, it doesn’t fall on his actual birthday of 15 January 1929, but it’s close enough. It’s a day to honor the life and acts of civil rights leader and Christian martyr, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.® He was one of the principal leaders in the 1950s civil rights movement, and a pastor in the Progressive National Baptist Convention. (One of that
One of the few photos of Dr. King® in the public domain. Wikimedia
So… what’s with all the little registered-trademark symbols (®) next to his name throughout this article? It’s because Martin Luther King Jr.,® his likeness, words, speeches, books, writings, and so forth, are owned by the Estate of Martin Luther King Jr. Inc., which is wholly owned by King’s® children Martin
The Estate got serious about defending their copyrights in the 1990s. On 28 August 1993,
The Estate also sued
King’s® children routinely claim they’re not trying to profit off their father’s legacy: They’re only trying to keep opportunists from sullying his image. Which is a valid concern.
Problem is, everyone knows this argument is utter rubbish.
There’s millions in King’s® estate.
The
This stuff is licensed by Intellectual Properties Management, another for-profit corporation, chaired by Dexter King. You want a copy of anything, you contact
Every so often, the Estate tries to sell King’s® effects. In 2006 the Estate put King’s® personal papers up for auction, hoping for a $30 million bid. Bit of a scandal, considering their historical value. Philanthropists privately bought the papers off the Estate for an undisclosed amount, and donated them to Morehouse College, where King® was an undergrad.
Four years ago, Martin and Dexter sued Bernice because the men wanted to sell King’s® Nobel Peace Prize, and his personal travel bible, to a private collector. Bernice, who considers them sacred, wouldn’t surrender them till a county judge ordered her to do so, in a ruling on 15 August 2016. King’s® personal effects aren’t to be found in museums; not even the recently-opened National Museum of African American History and Culture. The Estate won’t even lend stuff to the Smithsonian.
King® speeches have been licensed to plenty of advertisers. The licensing fees actually aren’t bad if you’re a non-profit organization, but if you’re for-profit (like, say, nearly every textbook publisher) it’s gonna cost you a bundle. The result: You’ve probably seen more of King’s® work thorough advertisements for Apple and Mercedes, than you have in your history classes. Irritating but true.
Back in graduate school I showed “I Have a Dream” in its entirety to some of my fellow students. (I ripped it from
I should also note the Martin Luther King Memorial, which opened in 2011 in Washington D.C. The Estate received $800,000 for the rights to use King’s® likeness and dozens of his quotes. I say “received” because it wasn’t reported how much the Estate charged. Yep, for a national memorial to honor their father. Without the fat licensing fee, I’m guessing the King Memorial would’ve been as featureless as the Washington Monument.
The side effect of all these licensing restrictions? Outside of the odd documentary who wants to pay off the Estate, I’m betting nearly all of you have never heard more than 30 seconds of a King® speech. You’ve never read more than a pull quote of something he wrote. You’ve never read his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” nor heard “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” in context. Schoolchildren go their entire lives without ever hearing King® was a pastor, a Christian minister, a preacher; without learning his civil rights activities were largely done within the context of the black church; without learning his speeches were nearly always sermons.
Can’t even quote King® in movies about him. The 2014 movie
Hey, it’s how copyright law works.
After
Are the Kings entitled to profit from King’s® works? Well, of course they are. They’re his heirs.
King® was a well-known public figure. But he wasn’t an elected official, nor a public servant. He was still a private citizen. His writings and speeches, regardless of how historically important they are, still wholly belonged to him. And now they belong to the
Assuming they ever do enter the public domain. Y’see, the Walt Disney Company regularly lobbies Congress to keep pushing back the expiration date. ’Cause everything Walt Disney created will enter the public domain in 2036. But if Disney gets its way, nothing from the 20th century will ever enter the public domain again. Forget about the 21st century altogether.
It’s been argued (’cause
I doubt King® ever fathomed they’d do as they’re currently doing with it. Lots of people point out King® made a point of a frugal lifestyle—as befitting the pastor of a poor community. But then again, had King® not been martyred in 1968, he might’ve survived to see his works increase greatly in value, and might’ve tried to make some money off them to raise funds for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Or even the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change—the nonprofit his wife founded, and Bernice King currently runs.
As things are, the King family can do as they choose with King’s® works. They can publish them (as they do), or not. They can donate the originals to museums and universities, or sell ’em to private collectors. They can license King’s® image to phone and computer and car companies for advertising, or even license him to the cartoon sitcom
Heck, if the King children were resentful of their father for being too busy with social justice causes while they were growing up, they could make a bonfire of everything and whiz on the ashes. That might get people to fight the ever-crazier copyright laws… but only for this specific instance.
King® is an important historical figure, and of immense value to students of the 20th century. And the King family gets to take full advantage of this till 2039. It’s how copyright law works.
Meanwhile, if you still wanna read “I Have a Dream,” here’s this. It includes a link to the audio. You’re welcome.
