{"id":6954,"date":"2023-04-07T14:39:06","date_gmt":"2023-04-07T18:39:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalfairhousing.org\/?p=6954"},"modified":"2023-04-07T14:41:18","modified_gmt":"2023-04-07T18:41:18","slug":"leading-civil-rights-organizations-call-for-swift-action-regarding-news-reports-that-justice-clarence-thomas-was-lavished-with-expensive-gifts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalfairhousing.org\/leading-civil-rights-organizations-call-for-swift-action-regarding-news-reports-that-justice-clarence-thomas-was-lavished-with-expensive-gifts\/","title":{"rendered":"Leading Civil Rights Organizations Call for Swift Action Regarding News Reports that Justice Clarence Thomas was Lavished with Expensive Gifts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 7, 2023
Media Contact: IWoodruff@NationalFairHousing.org<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington, D.C. \u2014<\/strong> Some of the nation\u2019s leading civil rights organizations issued a joint statement expressing shock and dismay following news reports that Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas accepted expensive gifts from Texas billionaire and real estate mogul Harlan Crow. The reports are an alarm about the need for strong ethics reforms for the nation\u2019s highest court, they said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ProPublica wrote a lengthy piece detailing how Thomas has accepted luxury gifts from Crow almost every year for more than two decades without reporting them on financial disclosure forms. The gifts included trips on Crow\u2019s yacht and private jet.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur organizations uphold the nation\u2019s civil and human rights laws and often find our issues before the Supreme Court. The cases we bring or support impact the lives of millions of people in this nation. We must have a court that works for all of us, not just the wealthy and powerful. And we must have full confidence and faith that no member of the highest court in the land is compromised. The Supreme Court is a critical and necessary pillar of our nation\u2019s judicial branch. It is part of the foundation upon which our democracy was built with the most somber responsibility to evaluate and interpret our laws. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is just the latest report raising serious ethical concerns<\/a>, and the news that Justice Thomas has allegedly received gifts, perhaps totaling millions of dollars, further undermines the public\u2019s trust that the court will fairly hear and adjudicate our society\u2019s most critical legal issues. As the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court must be held to the highest ethical standard. Yet currently, they are the only federal court with no binding ethics code. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe support and commend Senator Durbin, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who has vowed to act and expressed the need for a code of ethics for Supreme Court justices. We could not agree more. Congress must move swiftly to pass legislation establishing an enforceable code of ethics for Supreme Court justices. We also call upon the Committee and Congress to ensure a thorough investigation is conducted into these allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCongress must act to restore the public\u2019s faith in the Supreme Court, the head of our nation\u2019s judicial branch of government. Supreme Court justices hold tremendous power and sway. Their decisions impact every area and facet of our lives. It is imperative for our democracy and all of us that the Supreme Court be beyond reproach and that its rulings are administered fairly, with justice, and without prejudice or unfair influence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This statement was issued jointly by the following organizations:<\/p>\n\n\n\n