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FOCUS ON

Dred Scott v. Sandford

Six times a year, the editors of the Oxford African American Studies Center provide insights into black history and culture, showing ways in which the past and present interact by offering specially commissioned featured essays, photographic essays, and a selected list of articles that will further guide the reader. The latest Focus On article looks at the landmark Supreme Court case Dred Scott v. Sandford.

Photo Essay

Dred Scott v. Sandford

The United States Supreme Court has a long history of court cases concerning issues of race. Cases like Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), Brown v. Board of Education (1954), and Loving v. Virginia (1967) all brought the intersections of race and the law to a nation-wide audience. In 1857 another landmark case concerning race was brought before the Supreme Court. In the case of Dred Scott v. Sandford, Dred Scott, a man born into slavery, sued his owner for his freedom based on the fact that he had lived in U.S. territories where slavery was outlawed. It was not the first time a slave tried to obtain emancipation through the legal system, but Dred Scott captured the attention of the nation. The case encapsulated some of the major concerns of an expanding and rupturing country—should slavery be legal? How would new states handle the slavery issue? In a controversial decision the court ruled against Scott by arguing that as a man with African ancestry he was not entitled to state or federal citizenship. The current Focus On article examines the controversial Dred Scott case—a case in which the struggle for emancipation helped push the country into a civil war.
View photo essay

Featured Articles

The following entries have been selected to help guide readers who want to learn more about Dred Scott, his Supreme Court case, and the mounting tensions around the issue of slavery that eventually led to the Civil War. (Access to the following articles is available only to subscribers.)

Subject Entries

Biographies

Primary Documents