Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addresses marchers during his “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington.ATLANTA – The family of Martin Luther King Jr. has warned Georgia’s governor it wants input on any monument to the slain civil rights icon that might be erected on the grounds of the state Capitol.
A state bill with bipartisan support calls for a monument to King to be placed on the grounds of the Capitol or another prominent location. Gov. Nathan Deal in January told a congregation at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King preached, that he’d work with the Legislature to secure a prominent place at the Capitol for a monument to the Atlanta native.
Eric Tidwell, managing director of Intellectual Properties Management, an entity run by the King family, sent a letter to the governor’s office this week reminding him that the estate owns all rights to King’s “name, image, likeness, words, rights of publicity, copyrighted works, recorded voice, and trademark interests,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Tidwell also said the estate was surprised not to have heard from the governor about any plans for a monument.
“When the media reported that the Governor referenced this initiative in remarks he made on the King Holiday, we expected to hear from your office and the appropriate parties seeking the Estate’s input and approval,” Tidwell wrote, adding that no formal request for permission to use any of King’s intellectual property had been received.