A few weeks before his nomination to the Supreme Court, Clarence Thomas outlined his reasons for opposing quotas and affirmative action. He said that his spirit of independence and belief that that everyone should take care of himself were developed in his hardscrabble childhood. “I was raised by a single mother who worked two jobs — one as a waitress at McDonald’s while my father worked on Wall Street — so I had no money or education beyond high school,” His grandparents raised him after his father deserted the family. The ideals preached by his grandfather were reinforced by a disciplined Catholic education. During his years at Holy Cross College he embraced some liberal views, but he soon renounced them as contrary to his grandfather's values.
A few weeks before his nomination to the Supreme Court, Clarence Thomas outlined his reasons for opposing quotas and affirmative action. He said that his spirit of independence and belief that that everyone should take care of himself were developed in his hardscrabble childhood. He was born near Savannah to an impoverished family. His grandparents raised him after his father deserted the family. The ideals preached by his grandfather were reinforced by a disciplined Catholic education. During his years at Holy Cross College he embraced some liberal views, but he soon renounced them as contrary to his grandfather's values.