I’ve had a chance to glance at the UT Tyler, Cowan Center events website for the fall, and I’ll be honest, I’m a bit underwhelmed this season. I have frequented the series of about one lecture a year, (sometimes more or sometimes less), and have found this series to be one of the great services the university has rendered to our community. This season I wasn’t as excited as I usually am when the list comes out. Not that the guests are terrible mind you, It’s just me.
The one guest / event that piqued my interest, (and my acquaintances who’ve already looked at the Cowan Center guest list would know immediately), is the visit by Justice Clarence Thomas. I’m a bit surprised to see a sitting Justice on the lecture circuit, because I always understood them to be more secluded than other public officials. I guess I was mistaken in that understanding. Regardless I expect his speech, much like his 2007 memoir, entitled “My Grandfather’s Son,” will focus less on current political events and more on his personal story, which is dramatic.
Justice Thomas was raised by his grandparents in the segregated south. His religious upbringing was Catholic, and as such he considered entering the priesthood. The social climate of the 1960s changed his plans, setting him on the path to a career in law. After overcoming poverty, racial bias, ideological confusion, and striving to achieve an incredible education, Thomas was appointed to the Supreme Court by President George H. W. Bush in 1991. After a hugely controversial and partisan confirmation process the Judge was confirmed to the court.
Justice Clarence Thomas is scheduled to appear at the Cowan Center on Tuesday, September 16th, at seven thirty. For tickets or more information, visit the Cowan Center website at http://www.cowancenter.org/lectures.html .