Stuart Buck links to an article by Angela Onwuachi-Willig, published by the Iowa Law Review, that makes some interesting claims. The title is "Just Another Brother on the SCT?: What Justice Clarence Thomas Teaches Us About the Influence of Racial Identity".
According to this paper, Justice Thomas' brand of conservatism is unlike that of many other people who take similar positions. Contrary to the claims of many on the left that he's a sellout and a puppet, a good deal of his conservatism derives from his being black. The author considers herself a liberal black womanist, so there's obviously little political baggage driving this paper. She just thinks he's an interesting public figure with an interesting intellectual resume. Oh, and she thinks the liberal jeering that paints him as a puppet of Justice Scalia is a result of the same racism that led to the same connection between Justices Thurgood Marshall and William Brennan that similarly ignored the actual facts.
It's a 98-page paper that I don't expect very many, if any, of my readers to bother reading, so I'll give some highlights in subsequent posts:
Part 2: The Black Conservative Tradition
Part 3: Contemporary Black Conservatism
Part 4: Particular Issues in Black Conservatism
Part 5: Justice Thomas' History and Background
Part 6: Justice Thomas on the Particular Issues
Part 7: Justice Thomas' Judicial Philosophy
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