Georgia State Sen. Jason Anavitarte (R-Dallas) has called upon his colleagues in the Georgia General Assembly to place a statue of U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas on the state capitol grounds.
This, according to a press release that Anavitarte emailed Tuesday.
“The grounds of the Georgia Capitol should be a place where visitors can connect with their elected officials, as well as a place that provides opportunities to learn about Georgia history.” Anavitarte said in the press release.
“The grounds of the Georgia Capitol currently include statues and monuments to many notable Georgians. Justice Clarence Thomas, as a Georgia native and as a dedicated civil servant with nearly 30 years of service on the Supreme Court of the United States, it is only fitting and proper that a statue of him be displayed at the Capitol. Justice Thomas is only the second African American United States Supreme Court Justice and only the fourth from the State of Georgia. I urge the General Assembly to work with all relevant partners in order to have this statue constructed and installed as soon as is practical.”
Justice Thomas was born June 23, 1948 in Pin Point, Georgia in Chatham County. Justice Thomas attended St. John Vianney Minor Seminary near Savannah, before furthering his education at the Immaculate Conception Seminary in Missouri and, later, Yale Law School. In 1991, Justice Thomas was confirmed to the Supreme Court of the United States where he continues to serve.
Earlier this month, Thomas warned against politicizing the Supreme Court, saying that doing so could make the judicial system the “most dangerous” branch of government.
During a speech at the University of Notre Dame, Thomas cautioned against allowing “others to manipulate our institutions when we don’t get the outcome we like.” He reminded the crowd that justices do rule not based on “personal preferences.”
Thomas passively criticized some of his colleagues without mentioning any names.
“When we begin to venture into the legislative or executive branch lanes, those of us, particularly in the federal judiciary with lifetime appointments, are asking for trouble,” Thomas said.
“The court was thought to be the least dangerous branch and we may have become the most dangerous.”
“It’s not about winning or losing at the court. It is about the entire country and the idea of this country,” Thomas added.
He also warned against “destroying our institutions because they don’t give us what we want, when we want it.”
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “Georgia Capitol” by DXR. CC BY-SA 4.0.
