Clarence Thomas called an ‘Uncle Tom’ by Georgia lawmaker during statue vote
Kaelan Deese
A black Democratic lawmaker from Georgia called Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas an “Uncle Tom” who “sold his soul to the slave master” during a vote over whether to erect a statue in the judge’s home state.
The Georgia state Senate voted 32-20 along party lines Tuesday to create a statue on the state Capitol grounds in Atlanta to commemorate Thomas, a Pin Point, Georgia, native. The vote pushed the proposal, SB 69, to the House for more debate but not without contention by Democratic lawmakers.
“There’s a whole laundry list of positions that Justice Thomas has taken that I find offensive,” said state Sen. Emmanuel Jones (D), who likened Thomas to the derogatory and racist term.
JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS MAY HAVE STATUE IF GEORGIA GOP GETS ITS WAY
“Sometimes, when I talk to the majority party, I say, ‘Y’all just don’t get it,'” Jones added on Tuesday. “That term that we use is called ‘Uncle Tom.’ An Uncle Tom … talks about a person who, back during the days of slavery, sold his soul to the slave masters.”
Thomas grew up in Georgia as part of a poor family during the Jim Crow era and faced racial discrimination during his upbringing. As the eldest justice and one who is considered to be one of the most conservative members of the high court, his jurisprudence on many legal issues, such as vehement opposition to affirmative action, has drawn the ire of Democrats and some members of minority communities.
Video Embed
Many Democratic U.S. lawmakers also criticized Thomas’s wife, Ginni Thomas, last year after records showed she texted former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows after the 2020 election, urging him to keep fighting for former President Donald Trump’s claims of widespread fraud during the 2020 election, which failed dozens of court challenges including litigation brought to the Supreme Court.
“His wife actually encouraged this coup of violence in an attempt to stop the peaceful transfer of power for the first time in our country’s history,” said state Sen. Nikki Merritt, a Lawrenceville Democrat, referring to Ginni Thomas’s texts to Meadows weeks before the election-inspired violent riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Ginni Thomas later told the House Jan. 6 committee that she regretted her texts to Meadows but contended to investigators that her political advocacy after the election was minimal.
Efforts to create a statue honoring the first black Supreme Court justice from Georgia passed the state Senate by a party-line vote last year, but the measure did not have a vote in the state House before the legislature’s term ended.
State Sens. Jason Anavitarte (R) and Ben Watson (R) revived the bill earlier this month despite some worries raised last year by lawmakers across the political aisle.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Watson expressed confidence in the bill’s passing, saying in a statement to the Washington Examiner, “I think we’ll get it done this year.”
He also said no taxpayer spending would fund the project, noting the bill would create a monument committee to handle the design and fundraising through private donations.