In a powerful address to Hillsdale College class of 2016 on Sunday, Justice Clarence Thomas reminded graduates of the symbiotic relationship between freedom and personal responsibility, bemoaning the “bygone era” when “personal conduct,” not “grievances” were the means of elevation.
“As you go through life, try to be that person that teaches others how to be better people and better citizens,” Thomas said.
“Do not hide your faith and your beliefs under a bushel basket, especially in this world that seems to have gone mad with political correctness.”
He told students he would not summon them to go out in the world and fight social injustices. Instead, he urged them to strive to be good citizens and good neighbors.
“I resist what seems to be some formulaic or standard fare at commencement exercises, some broad complaint about societal injustice and at least one exhortation to the young graduates to go out and solve the stated problem or otherwise to change the world,” he said.
“In addressing your own obligations and responsibilities in the right way, you actually help to ensure our liberties and our form of government.
“At the risk of understating what is necessary to preserve liberty in our form of government, I think more and more that it depends on good citizens, discharging their daily duties in their daily obligations.”
Recalling the hallmarks of his youth and lessons learned from his grandfather, he said:
Thought not a lettered man, he knew that though not nearly perfect, our constitutional ideals were perfectible if we worked to protect them rather than to undermine them.
“As he said: ‘Son, don’t throw the baby out with the bath water’. That is don’t discard that which is precious along with that which is tainted.
“Today, when it seems that grievances rather than personal conduct are the means of elevation, this may sound odd or at least discordant. But those around us back then seem to have resolved themselves consistent with the duties that the ideals of our country demanded. They were law abiding, hard -working, disciplined.
“We were taught that despite unfair treatment we were to be good citizens and good people. If we were to have a functioning neighborhood, then we had to first be good neighbors. And if we were to have a good city, state and country, we were to be good citizens. The same went for our school, our church, the corporeal works of mercy, the greatest commandement: ‘Love thy neighbor as thyself.’ ”
“Just because someone else wronged us did not justify reciprocal conduct on our part. Right was right. And two wrongs didn’t make a right.