NEW YORK - The International Trademark Association (INTA) announced Dr. Bernice A. King as the keynote speaker for its 146th Annual Meeting, taking place in Atlanta, Georgia, from May 18 to 22, 2024.
According to INTA, close to 6,000 people have already registered for the 2024 Annual Meeting, among them brand professionals, business leaders and owners, government officials, and academics from 119 countries. Atlanta provides a perfect backdrop for the world’s premier intellectual property (IP) event of the year, with more than 10,000 registrants expected to participate. Often referred to as the “Capital of the South,” Atlanta is home to the headquarters for 13 of the S&P 500 companies, including AGCO Corporation, Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines Inc., Global Payments Inc., The Home Depot, Newell Brands, The Southern Company, and United Parcel Service (UPS)—in addition, several companies, such as Apple, Alphabet, and Microsoft have established offices in Atlanta in the last few years. It is also a regional hub for innovation and technology with Metro Atlanta boasting 40 corporate innovation centers, making it the highest concentrated city of startups and innovators in the U.S. southeast, all of this supported by the world’s busiest airport.
Atlanta is also often called the cradle of the modern Civil Rights Movement. The businesses and organizations of the historically significant Sweet Auburn District, together with the city’s Black academic institutions, established Atlanta as a center for positive change in the 1950s and 1960s. In addition, in 1957, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was formed in Atlanta. Coordinating protest activities throughout the South, the SCLC was led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.—the father of Dr. Bernice A. King—and Ralph David Abernathy. It played a central role in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
“I couldn’t be more excited and honored to welcome Dr. Bernice A. King as our keynote speaker; she so proudly and definitively represents the values and history of Atlanta. She stands as a representative of a family who has given so much to make Atlanta and the world a place of dignity and equality. She is a leader whose brand is synonymous with standing up for intentional and thoughtful representation,” declared 2024 Annual Meeting Co-Chair Auma Reggy (McKesson, USA), who has resided in Atlanta for more than 20 years.
Dr. Bernice A. King is a lawyer, minister, global thought leader, peace advocate, and CEO of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center For Nonviolent Social Change (The King Center). Founded by her mother as the official living memorial to the life, work, and legacy of her father, The King Center exists to ensure that her father’s philosophy of nonviolence, which Dr. King has since rebranded as Nonviolence365® continues to play a transformative role in society on a global scale. The youngest child of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King, Dr. King is an innovative, inspirational, and transformational leader and public speaker, devoted to advancing the legacy of her parents.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. recognized the need to protect creative works, especially those born from underrepresented communities, and he viewed IP not only as a source of economic value, but as a symbol of cultural identity and human dignity. He registered his own speeches, books, and letters as trademarks or copyrights. Through the King Center, Dr. King and her family oversee the estate including the IP associated with Martin Luther King, Jr.—including his “I Have a Dream” speech and his name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights—thereby protecting his legacy while leveraging the IP as a force for positive change and to advance the mission and work of the King Center.
“I couldn’t be prouder and more energized to have Dr. King join us on stage during our Opening Ceremony,” said INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo. “We are in Atlanta to bring together and celebrate a global and inclusive IP community and we could not ask for a more amazing keynote speaker than Dr. King—a leader in community activism and civil rights and with a deep understanding of how IP can serve as a tool for building a better society.”
The Opening Ceremony takes place on Sunday, May 19, 4:30 pm–6:00 pm, followed by the Welcome Reception.