Dred Scott and the dangers of a political court / Ethan Greenberg.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Greenberg, Ethan, 1957-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Scott, Dred, 1809-1858--Trials, litigation, etc.

Scott, Dred.

Sanford, John F. A., 1806 or 1807-1857--Trials, litigation, etc.

Sanford, John F. A.

Sanford, John F. A., 1806 or 1807-1857.

Scott, Dred, 1809-1858.

Slavery--Law and legislation--United States--History--19th century.

Slavery.

Political questions and judicial power--United States.

Political questions and judicial power.

Slavery--Law and legislation.

History.

United States.

Physical Description:

ix, 328 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Lexington Books, [2009]

Summary:

The Dred Scott decision of 1857 is widely(and correctly) regarded as the very worst in the long history of the U.S. Supreme Court. The decision held that no African American could ever be a U.S. citizen and declared that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 was unconstitutional and void. The decision thus appeared to promise that slavery would be forever protected in the great American West. Prompting mass outrage, the decision was a crucial step on the road that led to the Civil War.

Dred Scott and the Dangers of a Political Court traces the history of the case and tells the story of many of the key people involved, including Dred and Harriet Scott. President James Buchanan, Chief Justice Roger Taney, and Abraham Lincoln. Many modern commentators view the case chiefly in relation to Roe v. Wade and related controversies in modern constitutional law. Judge Ethan Greenberg demonstrates that most modern critiques of the case have little merit. The Dred Scott case was not about constitutional methodology, but chiefly about slavery, and about how very far the Dred Scott Court was willing to go to protect the political interests of the slave-holding South. The decision was wrong because the Court subordinated law and intellectual honesty to politics. The case thus exemplifies the dangers of a political Court.

Contents:

A slave's life

False promise of freedom : Scott's state court trials

"A dark and fell spirit" : the Missouri Supreme Court reverses

New trial and defeat in St. Louis federal court

At the summit : argument and reargument before the U.S. Supreme Court

The president-elect secretly intervenes

"The South is doomed" : Chief Justice Roger Taney

Taney's opinion of the court : an overview

Can a black man be a true American? : Taney on Negro citizenship

"Upon these considerations" : Taney strikes down the Missouri compromise

The road not taken : Taney on choice of law and res judicata

The majority concurs (after a fashion)

Two ringing dissents

Reaction and the way to Civil War

The use and misuse of history

The aspirationalist critique : "indifference to injustice"

The originalist critique : "first cousin to Roe"

The traditional "judicial restraint" critique

Dred Scott and the dangers of a political court.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780739137581

0739137581

OCLC:

430344760