On Second Thought For Tuesday, December 27, 2016

This week, members of the "On Second Thought" team are revisiting their favorite conversations and stories of the year. This morning, it was producer and reporter Sean Powers’ turn. He dedicated this show to Georgia history makers.

Twenty-five years ago this year, the nation watched as a federal judge from Savannah, Georgia named Clarence Thomas went through a grueling confirmation hearing to the U.S. Supreme Court. The hearing became a media circus after a young law professor named Anita Hill was called into testify. The nation watched in disbelief as Hill described in graphic detail her allegations of unwanted sexual advances by Thomas. Since being confirmed to the court in 1991, Justice Thomas has considered some of the biggest cases in our nation’s history. We looked back on his tenure with law professors Tanya Washington of Georgia State University and Stephen Gottlieb of Albany Law School.  

A new film called “Denial” starring Rachel Weisz tells the story of the 2000 legal battle between Emory University professor Deborah Lipstadt and British Holocaust denier David Irving. We talked with Lipstadt about the libel case, which garnered international attention.

The documentary “Olympic Pride, American Prejudice” tells the story of 18 athletes who represented the United States at the 1936 Olympic Games. Among the athletes were two Georgians. They defied Jim Crow and Nazi Germany to compete in the games, which took place in Berlin. The documentary was recently nominated for an NAACP Image Award. We talked with filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper and former Atlanta mayor Bill Campbell about the athletes and the hardships they faced.

Finally, Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta is working to preserve African-American history. It’s trying to identify hundreds of unmarked graves. Over the summer, groups of all ages were invited to tour the cemetery's historic African-American gravesites. Producer Sean Powers tagged along.