An image of Dred Scott, who sued for freedom. The Supreme Court denied his request in Dred Scott v. Sandford, which was decided on March 6, 1857. (Associated Press)
In his Oct. 2 Outlook essay, “Great résumés don’t make great presidents,” Robert Strauss wrote that the Supreme Court’s 1857 decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford “held the Fugitive Slave Act to be valid and said the Constitution did not give any state the right to restrict slavery.” Dred Scott , however, did not concern the Fugitive Slave Act in the slightest.
And although President Lincoln and many of his fellow Republicans condemned Dred Scott as a precursor to an eventual Supreme Court decision declaring state antislavery laws unconstitutional, Dred Scott only prevented the national government from restricting slavery in the territories.
When writing articles about U.S. history, journalists need to be far more careful about accurately presenting historical details.
Kanishk Singh, Great Falls