The Wall Street Journal's John Fund takes on the issue of greed and history in a column in today's paper. The family of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. have held tight to the rights to his speeches and words, to the detriment of history and education. Anyone attempting to use the late Dr. King's words to educate or inspire have found themselves faced with King's family with a hand out.

Hosea Williams, who in 1968 stood with Dr. King on the motel balcony where he was shot, told the Ottawa Citizen that the profiteering has sullied the King message of humility. "It wasn't white racists, nor was it the white government that did it; the people who killed King's dream are those closest to him, and that's the nightmare," he said.

King's family should allow his words to be freely used when it comes to historical projects, such as documentaries, textbooks and newspaper articles. It is perfectly OK to demand payment when they are used for commercial endeavors, such as recent commercials for Cingular Wireless that contained a portion of King's "I Have a Dream" speech. But to charge for educational and historical uses is an insult to King's memory.