Thomas Speech

Karen Grigsby Bates should have stopped while she was ahead (Commentary, June 5). I totally agree with her that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should be allowed to speak at the National Bar Assn.--an association for black lawyers and jurists. Judge Thomas is not only a lawyer, a former judge and a fellow American, he is a brother. I thought that the Revolutionary and Civil wars were both about freedom.

I, too, am not a Thomas fan, but he should be free to believe as he chooses without being ostracized by those who believe differently. Are all African Americans supposed to believe as one?

But then Bates, herself, takes the high road and says allowing people like Judge Thomas to speak “ensures that the curtain will be pulled away to show them as little men.” How elitist! Is this about exposing someone? I thought that meaningful dialogue was for the purpose of learning from others. After being on the highest bench in the land for seven years, I would think that Judge Thomas has something to say.

BILL STAMPS

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