RASKIN: It was nasty, Tommy would say, excuse me, but it's hard to be a human. He didn't mind gossip if it was good gossip. RASKIN: Well, you know, you couldn't be in his presence and say a negative thing about people. SIMON: What would you like us to take from Tommy Raskin into our own lives now?
And I tell you, that has been a solace and a comfort to me that, at this time, with the ugliest possible division where we've got a violent, seditious mob invading the Capitol that there is still enough decency and humanity that we can share each other's pain in a situation. And a lot of Republicans have reached out. And Speaker Pelosi has been unbelievably supportive and Steny Hoyer and Jim Clyburn, but also Liz Cheney, who said some really beautiful things about my family. And I have been moved by what our colleagues have said.
Your colleagues received you with great love, though, didn't they? Raskin, you went back to Congress this week of all weeks. And so, you know, he took very seriously feelings. And Tommy, who loved eating - he actually ate what are called bivalves, like mussels and stuff like that because they are not sentient, so they don't suffer. RASKIN: He drew the line very strictly at sentient beings. And he would say, Potter (ph) or Toby (ph), you're such a fine sentient being. And he would pet them sort of by gently touching the very top of their heads.
You know, He would take Benadryl or whatever to be around them. RASKIN: So he had a special relationship with them. And Tommy loved them, but he was allergic to dogs and cats. RASKIN: Well, the funny thing is we have a bunch of dogs in our (unintelligible). SIMON: Help us understand his feeling for animals. I mean, Tommy - he felt all of the pain and the suffering in the world, which is how, of course, he found his way quickly to vegetarianism. And we've been hearing stories like this ever since it happened. And Tommy learned of it and then said, well, rather than having people go on dates, why don't we just have everybody come over to our house for dinner? And she said that her son never forgot it. And she said we had no reason to notice or remember this, but there was a kid who felt like he was the only person in the school who didn't have a prom date. We got a letter from a neighbor whom we don't know super well. The stories of his love and compassion are absolutely astounding. But it wasn't his mind that marked him so extraordinary. He had a photographic memory and, like some other kids in our family, you know, knew all the presidents and vice presidents in order. RASKIN: Well, Tommy was remarkable from the beginning. SIMON: Tell us about your son, who you and your wife called a radiant light in this broken world? JAMIE RASKIN: Thank you for inviting me to talk to you, Scott. Our condolences to you and your wife, Sarah, and your family. His father, Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, joins us.Ĭongressman, thank you for making time for us. Tommy Raskin was 25 when he took his own life at his home on the day of New Year's Eve. But this young man, with what his parents called a riotously outrageous and relentless sense of humor, began to be tortured later in his 20s by a blindingly painful and merciless disease called depression. He won prizes at Amherst, wrote poetry, drew people to veganism and went on to Harvard Law. He always made time for the lonely kids in class, disdained gossip, loved animals and believed they have rights. Jamie Raskin of Maryland talked with NPR about his son's life and the outpouring of tributes to him. On New Year's Eve, 25-year-old Tommy Raskin killed himself.
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