I enjoyed this and learned a few things. ABC bring one. I was terribly saddened by what Clarence Thomas had to endure. Makes me wonder when racism will ever end. I’ve also been on the receiving end. Thank you. I loved it.
Thank you so much for reading and sharing this compassionate response. Thomas did go through a lot as a child. Those hurtful things never really go away. I’m sorry you’ve also felt the impact of racism. I’d like to believe it will someday disappear. But I’d also like to win the lottery.
We surely can. My dad used to say it will end the more blending of races there is. I sometimes wonder about that. It’s already happening, looked down upon by some and welcomed by others.
Right! I’ve been wondering how he squares that with his wife. I’m interested to see what tonight’s Frontline report on PBS has to say about their relationship and how they have managed to become a power couple in DC.
I often wonder if all humans are inherently racists. If we all do not see the differences between "them" and "us" such as skin color, eye shape, and body build as some how threatening. I don't know if this is learned behavior or instinctive. The truly abhorrent part of this is the assumption that "we" are better and entitled to a different standard of treatment. I, too, do not agree with the decisions of Justice Thomas but we cannot retroactively apply a different standard of conduct on him that has not been universally applied to others.
Thank you for contributing this very thoughtful response. I've read a little about implicit bias and even attended a workshop at one of my day jobs, which revealed to me that everyone has some internal bias, even if they don't realize it. So I'm glad you've mentioned that. Thanks also for pointing out that there is a retroactive aspect to the Clarence case.
I may have mentioned in another comment that I have yet to see any tweets calling Justice Alito any of the racial slurs associated with Italian Americans, even though it was Alito who wrote the Dobbs decision.
As Mikels mentioned in an earlier comment, racism poisons everything. I believe it has poisoned Thomas. Who knows it may have poisoned all of us. But I believe some of us want to be mindful of how it has affected us and are always looking for ways to get past it and heal.
Thanks again for reading and taking the time to share your views. I really appreciate it.
NOTE 2: Perhaps I should have mentioned this in the essay itself, but after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, nobody took to Twitter to hurl racial epithets at Justice Alito, whose background is Italian. But Thomas, on the other hand, was racially singled out and targeted as the social media platform was flooded with the N-word. I don't like Thomas as a judge, but I really think the racial dimension and double standard to the current "expensive gifts" story needs to be called out.
NOTE: While researching this piece, I came across Saturday Night Live's cold-open skit during the Thomas confirmation hearings. Although I couldn't find a place for it within today's essay, I'm including a link here for anyone who might be interested in SNL's take while all that was going on.https://youtu.be/shkJfRpktGc
Your last paragraph nails it. I think most of the outrage directed toward Clarence Thomas is because “he’s Black - and conservative”. The links in this essay are excellent! I always appreciate your measured approach to controversial issues, Andrew.
Thank you so much for reading. I'm glad you were able to drill into some of the links. My opinions are obvious from what I write, but it seems a good idea to provide backup for the facts. Thanks also for your kind and encouraging words. Much appreciated.
No question that many people are delighted to finally get the chance to come down on the black guy hard without being called out. It's just another example of how racism poisons everything in our country. Can we get past it? It will be hard. We'll see. The critical thing is to try to focus on the issue of corruption, which will mean widening the focus to the entire SCOTUS. Even further would be nice, of course.
“The critical thing is to try to focus on the issue of corruption.”
Thanks for mentioning this important point! Gift-giving at this level is not just unethical and a conflict of interest—it’s influence peddling. It may not necessarily involve a specific case before the court but it does impact the court’s entire philosophy. Why would the Federalist Society make secret payments to Ginni Thomas if not to influence how she and her husband think about the Federalist agenda?
As Sen. Whitehouse noted, gun lobbyists and other wealthy special interest advocates joined those hunting trips with Scalia.
This is bad on so many levels. And I totally agree that the inquiry should be widened. The race thing complicates this and really gets to me, as you can no doubt tell.
Thanks, as always, for reading and making this crucial point. Much appreciated!
I enjoyed this and learned a few things. ABC bring one. I was terribly saddened by what Clarence Thomas had to endure. Makes me wonder when racism will ever end. I’ve also been on the receiving end. Thank you. I loved it.
Thank you so much for reading and sharing this compassionate response. Thomas did go through a lot as a child. Those hurtful things never really go away. I’m sorry you’ve also felt the impact of racism. I’d like to believe it will someday disappear. But I’d also like to win the lottery.
We surely can. My dad used to say it will end the more blending of races there is. I sometimes wonder about that. It’s already happening, looked down upon by some and welcomed by others.
That’s right. It’s wishful thinking.
Yes, but if we can’t remove racism from the world, we can at least keep it from growing in ourselves. N'est-ce pas?
“All whites are racist”. Must make for interesting dinner conversation with Gianni since the never discuss politics.
Right! I’ve been wondering how he squares that with his wife. I’m interested to see what tonight’s Frontline report on PBS has to say about their relationship and how they have managed to become a power couple in DC.
Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts.
I often wonder if all humans are inherently racists. If we all do not see the differences between "them" and "us" such as skin color, eye shape, and body build as some how threatening. I don't know if this is learned behavior or instinctive. The truly abhorrent part of this is the assumption that "we" are better and entitled to a different standard of treatment. I, too, do not agree with the decisions of Justice Thomas but we cannot retroactively apply a different standard of conduct on him that has not been universally applied to others.
Thank you for contributing this very thoughtful response. I've read a little about implicit bias and even attended a workshop at one of my day jobs, which revealed to me that everyone has some internal bias, even if they don't realize it. So I'm glad you've mentioned that. Thanks also for pointing out that there is a retroactive aspect to the Clarence case.
I may have mentioned in another comment that I have yet to see any tweets calling Justice Alito any of the racial slurs associated with Italian Americans, even though it was Alito who wrote the Dobbs decision.
As Mikels mentioned in an earlier comment, racism poisons everything. I believe it has poisoned Thomas. Who knows it may have poisoned all of us. But I believe some of us want to be mindful of how it has affected us and are always looking for ways to get past it and heal.
Thanks again for reading and taking the time to share your views. I really appreciate it.
NOTE 3: Here's a link to the new Frontline documentary about Thomas, which will begin airing on PBS on Tuesday, May 9th. CLARENCE & GINNI THOMAS: Politics, Power, and the Supreme Court https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/clarence-and-ginni-thomas/
NOTE 2: Perhaps I should have mentioned this in the essay itself, but after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, nobody took to Twitter to hurl racial epithets at Justice Alito, whose background is Italian. But Thomas, on the other hand, was racially singled out and targeted as the social media platform was flooded with the N-word. I don't like Thomas as a judge, but I really think the racial dimension and double standard to the current "expensive gifts" story needs to be called out.
NOTE: While researching this piece, I came across Saturday Night Live's cold-open skit during the Thomas confirmation hearings. Although I couldn't find a place for it within today's essay, I'm including a link here for anyone who might be interested in SNL's take while all that was going on.https://youtu.be/shkJfRpktGc
Your last paragraph nails it. I think most of the outrage directed toward Clarence Thomas is because “he’s Black - and conservative”. The links in this essay are excellent! I always appreciate your measured approach to controversial issues, Andrew.
Thank you so much for reading. I'm glad you were able to drill into some of the links. My opinions are obvious from what I write, but it seems a good idea to provide backup for the facts. Thanks also for your kind and encouraging words. Much appreciated.
No question that many people are delighted to finally get the chance to come down on the black guy hard without being called out. It's just another example of how racism poisons everything in our country. Can we get past it? It will be hard. We'll see. The critical thing is to try to focus on the issue of corruption, which will mean widening the focus to the entire SCOTUS. Even further would be nice, of course.
“The critical thing is to try to focus on the issue of corruption.”
Thanks for mentioning this important point! Gift-giving at this level is not just unethical and a conflict of interest—it’s influence peddling. It may not necessarily involve a specific case before the court but it does impact the court’s entire philosophy. Why would the Federalist Society make secret payments to Ginni Thomas if not to influence how she and her husband think about the Federalist agenda?
As Sen. Whitehouse noted, gun lobbyists and other wealthy special interest advocates joined those hunting trips with Scalia.
This is bad on so many levels. And I totally agree that the inquiry should be widened. The race thing complicates this and really gets to me, as you can no doubt tell.
Thanks, as always, for reading and making this crucial point. Much appreciated!