[oska]

The family of a controversial public figure would do better not to expose themselves to public discussion of that person soon after their death but to grieve privately.

And if people are speaking ill of the dead it's highly likely that people were speaking ill of them before they died too, so any 'ill-speak' is hardly likely to be news to them.

(I'm speaking from principle here; I personally have nothing ill to say about Harold Bloom).