Court of Appeal

Forty-one essays from across the political spectrum, plus Clarence Thomas’s and Anita Hill’s statements to the Senate Judiciary Committee and position papers from major black organizations

Despite the intense media coverage of the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, one aspect seemed continually sidestepped: the response of African Americans to this televised investigation of race, gender, sexuality, and, especially, the black psyche and intra-racial politics. When the dust settled, and Thomas was confirmed, what did it mean for the black community?

Robert Chrisman and Robert L. Allen, the editors of The Black Scholar, the most influential intellectual publication for African Americans, have assembled all the material relevant to understanding the Thomas hearings: a complete chronology of the confirmation process, the statements of both Professor Hill and Justices Thomas, and essays by prominent African Americans, including Maya Angelou, Derrick Bell, Julian Bond, Rosemary Bray, Beverly Guy-Sheftall, Calvin Hernton, Gloria T. Hull, June Jordan, Maulana Karenga, Julianne Malveaux, Orlando Patterson, Barbara Smith, Robert Staples, Ronald W. Walters, and Sarah E. Wright.

This provocative collection examines such issues as how African Americans perceive their interests; the disturbing sexual backlash against Professor Hill and what it says about the position of black females; the inability of some members of the Judiciary Committee to comprehend the nature of sexual harassment; the continuing confusion and fixation of white America on black sexuality; and the character, goals, and values of the new generation of post-civil-rights blacks.

Representing voices from arch conservatives to liberals to radicals, this books reaffirms that the black community is the final “court of appeal” in this great debate.

These readings, which were collected in The Black Scholar magazine (where Chrisman and Allen are editors), include diverse black perspectives on the confirmation hearing of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Though the volume begins with statements from Thomas and Anita Hill and ends with analysis of Thomas's judicial record, in the main it seems disorganized. Still, many essays are valuable: Ernest Allen Jr. shows how Thomas's supporters used gender stereotypes to discredit Hill while Thomas invoked racial stereotypes to gain credence; Calvin Hernton analyzes an ideology that allots power first by race and second by gender, placing black women on the bottom of the heap; June Jordan eloquently attacks black leaders who abandoned Hill. Too few of the essays address the flawed hearing process. The volume includes both support for Thomas and criticism, including Derrick Bell's acid suggestion that Thomas is a revolutionary in disguise, his "seemingly ridiculous statements . . . part of a carefully conceived conspiracy." Given the redundancy of much of the criticism, it would have been useful had the book included some reflections on Thomas's initial performance on the high court.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The editors have done a fine job of selecting a broad spectrum of commentary by notable black Americans on the controversial confirmation hearings of Clarence Thomas. Reading their selections makes it clear that the black community is as split as anyone else about what happened and who the villain is. However, they could have improved the book by including more background on the issues. For instance, an article by Trellie L. Jeffers states that Hill had originally made her complaint against Thomas six years before the hearings, a fact not generally known. Putting the articles in chronological order and giving them further context would have helped, too. Maya Angelou's statement was written in August 1991, before Hill was public news, but what did she think in November after Thomas was confirmed? These quibbles aside, this book is an essential purchase for most libraries, due to its timeliness, general interest, and gold mine of information for political scientists and scholars of black and women's studies. See also Paul Simon's Advice and Consent: Clarence Thomas, Robert Bork, and the Intriguing History of the Supreme Court's Nomination Battles , reviewed below.--Ed.
- Anita L. Cole, Miami-Dade P.L. System, Fla.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.