Is Copyright Law Racist and Sexist?

Did you know that Hitler’s publisher sued in 1939 in an American federal court to obtain a copyright injunction to stop a version of his book Mein Kampf? This copyright program, for any generalist or IP practitioner, is a fascinating walk on the wild side of copyright, asking whether copyright law operates systematically in a way that is sexist or racist.

Featuring an interview with John Tehranian about his book The Secret Life of Copyright, the program examines fascinating and unusual copyright cases—from Harvard claiming copyright in an 1860s photograph of an enslaved person, to Hitler invoking equity jurisdiction, to victims of illegally recorded nude videos not owning their copyrights and therefore being unable to stop online copies, to a suicide note posted online, which the deceased’s wife had removed using copyright law.

Through our interview, we explore copyright authorship standards, co-ownership rules, and derivative work rules, along with a general copyright overview so the program is accessible to anyone, to see where these laws may not be working or may be operating to the disadvantage of minority groups. The interview also offers proposals for reform.