Dred Scott Decision

[ dred ]

noun

1. ScottScott, Dred2

Dred Scott decision

1. A controversial ruling made by the Supreme Court in 1857, shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War . Dred Scott, a slave, sought to be declared a free man on the basis that he had lived for a time in a “free” territory with his master. The Court decided that, under the Constitution , Scott was his master's property and was not a citizen of the United States. The Court also declared that the Missouri Compromise , which prohibited slavery in certain areas, unconstitutionally deprived people of property — their slaves. The Dred Scott decision was a serious blow to abolitionists ( see abolitionism ).

Example Sentences

It would join such other corrective amendments as the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, passed in the wake of the Civil War, both of which reversed the Supreme Court's infamous Dred Scott decision by abolishing slavery and granting citizenship to freed slaves.

From Salon

Wade has supplanted its 1857 Dred Scott decision as the worst in its history.

From Los Angeles Times

Doerfler said controversial court decisions have often led to reform — including the 1857 Dred Scott decision that barred citizenship for enslaved and formerly enslaved people.

From Salon

Holder, where Chief Justice Roberts advanced the idea of equal state sovereignty, which you tie back to the Dred Scott decision.

From Salon

Supreme Court’s infamous 1857 Dred Scott decision that declared African Americans could not be citizens.

From Seattle Times