European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 1, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Iun Liuni digging deeper than skin a year after Thomas Hill Clarence Page brimming with glee the Little boy rushed into the room. A Mommy Mommy a he shouted. A the chose a Black Man he chose a Black Man a the african american Mother shared his excitement. President Bush had chosen a Black Man judge Clarence Thomas to replace retiring Justice Thurgood Marshall the supreme courts first and Only Black Justice. A year later i am watching her recall the moment in a pcs frontline documentary on the first anniversary of Thomas hearings that examines How the hearings into Anita Hills sexual harassment charges Tore americans Black Community apart. The Mother is More excited by her Young songs reaction to the Choice than she is by the Choice itself. Her songs happiness is All it takes to make Thomas appointment a worthwhile end in itself. Never mind what his personal beliefs might happen to be or whether they will be Good or harmful to Black americans. A a a Mommy Mommy a a she repeats with a satisfied smile a a the chose a Black Man a a maybe i am getting jaded but i am asking myself Why is this woman so Happy with that after All i too was excited by the selection of a Black Man Back in 1967 when it was a  but we be crossed that Milestone already Haven to we Are we so hard up for Black heroes that skin color is the Only Standard we have by which to judge any brother the president hands us even when he obviously is not the a Best qualified candidate As the president claims at Thurgood Marshall a final press conference he warned us with ominous cryptic Wisdom a a there a no difference Between a Black Snake and a White Snake. They both  the warning was lost on Many of us judging by opinion polls and a preponderance of anecdotal evidence gathered in living rooms Barber shops and Black oriented talk radio shows. And a great Opportunity also has been lost. As a result a year after the Thomas Hill contretemps Blacks have gained nothing from it in comparison to feminists who channelled their anger into growing political Power or conservatives who got the impressionable Young right Wing Justice they wanted or even Liberal Senate democrats who looked spineless when they let Hill twist in the wind but May yet win a democratic White House at least partly because of it. That a not a bad Deal. Anita Hill also got something popularity. Recent polls by . News and world report Gallup Abc and the Wall Street journal show the number of people who believe her has risen sharply in the last year to break even or pull Well ahead of Thomas. So who lost guess. We could have reached As a Community beyond the skin deep satisfaction of racial symbolism to explore in a meaningful Way what kind of person should be Thurgood Marshall a replacement in order to carry on rather then tear apart his legacy. Thomas repeatedly warned us that a what he planned to do and so far that a what he has done. Black leaders were caught embarrassingly off Euard by Bush a selection of an eloquent if woefully under qualified Black conservative. By the time they figured out whether to support him or not most major Black groups did no tit had Little Impact. Then we were treated to the humiliating sight of White male Senate inquisitors forcing two of the Community a finest Young role models and Success stories to discuss embarrassing sexual allegations on National television a sight that might never have happened had the subjects been White. Black americans also lost important coalitions with other sympathetic groups particularly feminists. Along with it we lost a needed sense of cohesive Ness Between Black men and Black women. One of the More eloquent voices of division Black writer Ishmael Reed in a Washington Post essay blamed the divisions on a conspiracy by a White Media feminists who have a decided to make the Lynching of Clarence Thomas an annual  Reed is a Fine novelist and ardent anti feminist which is his right. But his blame game overreached. It deeply insults Black women since it implies they arc too silly stupid or Content to complain without prodding from White , Here come along with Ronald Reagan Andy Rooney u until last weekend i knew nothing about Bakersfield calif., except that Frank Gifford grew up there. The event there that i attended was what id Call a speaking Jamboree. Every year a Bakersfield Law firm with the simple trick of offering huge sums of Money induces Well known people among which i am immodesty including myself to come there to speak on the same Day. In a tent 500 feet Long and 160 feet wide 7,000 people paid $210 each to sit and listen from 9 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon on oct. 24 to in succession Cliff Robertson the actor Helmut Schmidt the former West German Chancellor Ronald Reagan Robert Macneil of the Mancil Lochrer news hour Jerry Goodman who a known As Adam Smith on his Money show comedian Rich Little a motivational speaker named Zigman Andy Rooney Walter Cronkite and Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf. I Wasny to scheduled to speak until 3 30, but i wanted to hear former president Reagan so i decided to go to the California state University Campus to hear him at 11 . Helmut Schmidt accompanied by a tall attractive German woman in an exceedingly Short skirt was about to speak As i arrived. Midway through Schmidt a speech the Gate to the area behind the speakers platform opened again and a 12-car caravan entered with Reagan in the third car. He was ushered into a trailer that had been festooned with the american Flag. A few minutes be a Clarence Thomas at confirmation hearing. Yet i give Reed credit for believing these issues need to be talked out not snuffed out by those who abhor washing dirty laundry in Public. Unfortunately we tend to avoid meaningful dialogue Between those in the Black Community who thought Thomas should be judged on his conservative views and those who thought he should be confirmed Straightaway because any Black on the High court is better than not having any Black at All. A hence a writes Black scholar Cornel West in Rocc ing Justice engendering Power a Book of essays on the legacy of the hearings edited by Toni Morrison a a grand Opportunity for substantive discussion and struggle Over race and gender was missed in Black America and the larger society. And Black leadership must share sonic of the  we All must. Until we speak More candidly with one another and come to grips with the glaring but Seldom acknowledged class and gender differences and resentments within our own Community we will continue to be vulnerable to manipulation by politicians who May not necessarily have our Best interests in mind. Am i calling for All Blacks to think alike no not at All. I am merely calling on my fellow Black americans to think. Otherwise if a racial reasoning a As Cornel West Calls the skin deep color Standard is the Only Standard of character judgment we pass on to our children we should not be surprised if it is the Only Standard they use. The Chicago Tribuno fore Schmidt finished Reagan emerged and Canic to the area behind the speakers platform. Id been watching a television Monitor there but 1 stepped Back when i saw Reagan coming. A did Ronald Reagan Ever hear of Andy Rooney a i thought. 0 Reagan stood watching Schmidt for perhaps a minute then looked around. He glanced in my direction broke into a big smile and waved at me to come Over. Now i done to care where you stand on Ronam Reagan its difficult to fight off the pleasure of being recognized by a Man who was president of the United states. I was pleased. Photographers started snapping pictures Reagan just As he must have done hundreds of thousands of times before put his left hand on our clasped right hands and turned to the cameras with another big smile. A a in a not even running for anything a i said to him. He laughed and we chatted about nothing for a few minutes. I never told Reagan that i did no to vote for him. Tribune Media service Andy Rooney la a former Star and Sui pea reporter. November 1. 1992 sunday a Page 9