Op-Ed on Clarence Thomas's Book

Here's an op-ed from Alabama. While the author disagrees with Thomas on many issues, he comes to this conclusion:

Despite our radically different points of view, I think it's right to view Clarence Thomas as a role model. Why? Because we all aren't going to agree on every issue - not even when our common ancestry or experiences suggests that we might.

W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington didn't. Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. didn't.

Yet despite their differences, the black community reveres them all. We need to figure out a way to do the same for Thomas.

One day, some black child will see Thomas' lone black face among the nine Supreme Court justices, knowing nothing of his politics or filthy jokes. And that lone black face will give this child hope. Because Thomas could do it, the child will believe he can, too.

We can talk to the child about Thomas' politics later. But in that moment, the child will be better off to have seen Clarence Thomas standing among the nine in that long, black robe.