Neither Clarence Thomas nor Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote the majority decision in the US supreme court’s major ruling on Thursday ending race-conscious admissions at universities, but it was those two justices who issued the two most stinging – and mutually combative – opinions.
Both Jackson and Thomas wrote bluntly and personally about the role of race in American society and, unconventionally, used their respective opinions to sharply attack the vision of America that the other justice offered. Jackson wrote one of two dissenting opinions that all three liberal-leaning justices on the court signed on to. Thomas wrote a 58-page concurring opinion, nearly 20 pages longer than the majority opinion authored by Chief Justice John Roberts.
