Conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas used a address at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law to urge young Americans to defend the nations founding principles and resist the advance of progressive ideology.
The event, held in honor of the upcoming 250th anniversary of the United States and live-streamed by CSPAN, offered a rare, extended look at the jurisprudential and moral convictions of the Courts most senior conservative member, according to Gateway Pundit. CSPAN summarized the occasion by noting that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas spoke at the University of Texas at Austin ahead of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. During his address, he emphasized the importance of defending and preserving U.S. founding principles, CSPAN said.
The network further reported that He also criticized progressive ideology and highlighted the significance of civility in public discourse, warning that a lack of civility could affect the future of the Supreme Court, CSPAN said. Thomas, nominated to the high court by President George H. W. Bush, framed his remarks as both a warning and a call to action for conservatives who see the Constitution and Declaration under sustained ideological assault.
Addressing a question-and-answer session, a student identified as Sergio Nunez pressed the Justice on the erosion of public confidence in government institutions. Nunez asked, Why do you think public trust has eroded? Which concerns do you think are legitimate, and how do you suggest we, as a people, can rebuild confidence in government, including the judiciary?
Justice Thomas responded by directly challenging the philosophical underpinnings of the modern left. Progressivism seeks to replace the basic premises of the Declaration of Independence and hence our form of government, the 77-year-old said.
He urged the students to reject passivity and reclaim their civic inheritance rather than surrender it to ideological activists and bureaucrats. I think if we dont stand up and take ownership of our country and take responsibility for it, we are slowly letting others control how we think and what we think, Clarence Thomas said.
Participation, he argued, is the antidote to cynicism and institutional decay. If you think its losing confidence, then you get up, and you participate. You dont sit on the sidelines, he said.
Thomas closed by invoking the moral courage of the Founding Fathers as the standard for todays citizens, particularly young conservatives facing cultural and academic hostility. In my view, we must find in ourselves that same level of courage that the signers of the Declaration have so that we can do for our future what they did for theirs, he said.
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