My Grandfather's Son

Buddy read with Jeananne. I went into this expecting that I wouldn't like it - after all, Clarence Thomas and I are basically on opposite ends of the political spectrum, and I'm a RBG girlie. Also I am not in the best headspace regarding politics these days, and I really don't know anyone who is like Politics! What Fun! right now.

Turns out I knew basically nothing about Thomas' career prior to the Supreme Court? And also, this should not have been a surprise BUT IT WAS ... that a trained lawyer and judge would be a REALLY GOOD WRITER??

I found myself pretty invested in the narrative and his lifelong quest for racial justice, through the use of practical solutions, and his slow shift from young activist to career Republican at the EEOC, as he realized how few liberal politicians were actually interested in real hands-on problem-solving, or working with him at all when he tried to help his own people in concrete ways that didn't involve government intervention.

I know politics has always been polarized - and that neither side is inherently trustworthy - and this was a good reminder of that. I also acknowledge that the last 8 years have really messed me up, and Matt and I have been talking about that lately - my lack of trust in people that I don't actually have any reason to distrust, based only on assumptions in their politics, and what they should or shouldn't stand for. Politics scares me, and I can't turn away even when I know it's hurting me, and being able to turn away is a privilege anyway - but people don't scare me in and of themselves - and there goes the spaghetti in my head, getting all tangled up again.

I appreciated that Thomas came to the judiciary with the goal of doing the best he could as an impartial judge of each case, even if he comes at it from a different perspective than me. I respected his perspective here - he's human, not a bogeyman determined to destroy everything I hold dear (even if his judgments have kind of resulted in that sort of stuff happening...). But I absolutely do not understand accepting various judicial positions - including to the Supreme Court! - when one does not even want the job! It seemed like a lot of pain to go through for something he didn't want to do.

This book was good. My head is complicated. The end.