George Washington University Rejects Student Petition to Fire Clarence Thomas as Law Prof

You might think that students at any university would be thrilled to have a Supreme Court Justice — any Supreme Court Justice — on board as an adjunct law professor, and maybe that would be true in a sane world, but while America in 2022 can be called many things, “sane” is not high on the list.

A petition to administrators at George Washington University to fire Justice Clarence Thomas from its law faculty has received over 9,000 signatures, but in a move that is decidedly at odds with campus culture today, the university has adamantly refused to fire Thomas and even defended “the robust exchange of ideas.” Sunspots? Or has university fascism reached its high-water mark and is now beginning to recede?

Thomas is currently an adjunct professor of law at GWU and teaches a seminar on Constitutional law. He will apparently continue to do so for now, for on Tuesday, GWU Provost Christopher Bracey and Georgetown Law School Dean Dayna Bowen Matthew stated that “because we steadfastly support the robust exchange of ideas and deliberation [you do?], and because debate is an essential part of our university’s academic and educational mission [it is?] to train future leaders who are prepared to address the world’s most urgent problems, the university will neither terminate Justice Thomas’ employment nor cancel his class in response to his legal opinions.”