Clarence Thomas in Spotlight Like Few Other Justices

A newly released Clarence Thomas documentary nudges the Supreme Court justice further into the public spotlight, a place where few of his colleagues past and present have ventured.

“Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words” traces his rise from a childhood in rural segregated Georgia to a seat on the highest court in the land. It covers a “complex and often painful life,” according to the film’s website.

Thomas’ enigmatic persona at the Supreme Court—he’s known for saying virtually nothing at oral arguments for over the past decade and a half—gives little window into his reportedly friendly and gracious personality.

His celebrity exposure, which includes his racially charged 1991 confirmation fight and oft-told stories about meeting ordinary people while traveling on vacation with his wife in their RV, is only topped among justices by his current colleague, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Ginsburg, the liberal heavyweight, has been the subject of a documentary, a dramatic screenplay, opera, and several books.

And her “Notorious RBG” status—meant to liken her to the late rapper “The Notorious B.I.G."—has made her an unlikely cultural icon, popping up in a workout book, fan’s tattoos, and even a cameo in “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part.”

The wider public also is getting a rare glimpse of Chief Justice John Roberts in action as he presides over the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. But he’s seeking to avoid the spotlight and, outside of judicial settings, he doesn’t register much on the celebrity meter.

Thomas and Ginsburg are the exceptions—now and throughout the Supreme Court’s history.

And that’s the way it should be, according to Michigan Law’s Richard D. Friedman.

Justices aren’t “supposed to be politically accountable, at least in the traditional sense,” so “it’s probably better for the American governmental system, as well as for them personally, if they can go about their business and their personal lives without too much public attention,” Friedman said.

Only a few other justices have received public attention off the bench, said Supreme Court historian Lucas Powe.

That includes the prolific writer and environmentalist William O. Douglas and, more recently, conservative icon Antonin Scalia.

No one, though, has even come close to the popularity of Ginsburg, though, Powe, a professor at University of Texas at Austin School of Law, said.

But despite Ginsburg’s star status, the fact remains that most Americans can’t name a single justice, Powe added. Only 48% of those surveyed in a 2018 C-SPAN poll could do so.

The phenomenon of Supreme Court justices in popular culture is probably a “passing” one, Friedman said.