Posted on 08/22/2014 6:02:39 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The ghost of Dred Scott haunts the streets of Ferguson, Missouri.
Thousands have been protesting the police killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson. He was due to start college just days after he was shot dead in broad daylight. Police left his bleeding corpse in the middle of the street for over four hours, behind police tape, as neighbors gathered and looked on in horror. Outraged citizens protested, and police brutally cracked down on them. Clad in paramilitary gear and using armored vehicles, they shot tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and flash-bang grenades, aiming automatic weapons at protesters. Scores of peaceful protesters as well as journalists have been arrested.
The protests have raged along Ferguson's West Florissant Avenue. Four miles south of the protest's ground zero, along the same street, in the quietude of Calvary Cemetery, lies Dred Scott, the man born a slave who famously fought for his freedom in the courts. The Dred Scott decision of 1857 is considered by many to be the worst one in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court. It ruled that African-Americans, whether slave or free, could not be citizens, ever.
Scott was born into slavery in Virginia around 1799 (the same year noted Virginia slaveholder President George Washington died). Scott's owner moved from Virginia, taking him to Missouri, a slave state. He was sold to John Emerson, a surgeon in the U.S. Army. In 1847, Scott sued Emerson for his freedom in a St. Louis court. Scott and his family prevailed, winning their freedom, only to have the decision overturned by the Missouri Supreme Court. The case then went to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In the court's majority opinion, Chief Justice Roger Taney, a supporter of slavery, wrote, "A free negro of the African race, whose ancestors were brought to this country and sold as slaves, is not a 'citizen' within the meaning of the Constitution of the United States." Thus, the court ruled that all African-Americans, whether slave or free, were not citizens, and never would be.
The ruling also declared the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional. The compromise made Missouri a slave state, but dictated that northern territories in the rapidly expanding United States would be free territories, with slavery outlawed. The Dred Scott decision opened up all of these new territories to slavery, and was deemed a victory for the Southern slave states. The decision sent shockwaves through the country. Abraham Lincoln invoked the decision in his famous "House Divided" speech, saying: "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free." The Dred Scott decision would help lead to the election of Lincoln as president, and push the country ever closer to civil war.
Professor john a. powell (who writes his name in lower-case letters) teaches courses on Dred Scott. He is a professor of law and African-American studies at UC Berkeley, and sees a link between that awful decision and problems today. "We still have not come to full recognition of blacks and other people as full citizens, as full people," he told me. The protests in Ferguson stem in part, he says, because "the black community tends to be overpoliced and unprotected."
Ferguson is emblematic of deep racial divisions that persist in the United States today. Since the 1980s, the city has shifted from a majority white population to one that is majority black. Yet the mayor is white. The city council is overwhelmingly white, as is the school board. Perhaps most relevant to the protests, 50 officers of the 53-member police force are white as well. Pastor Michael McBride of Berkeley, has been in Ferguson, organizing the community in the aftermath of Michael Brown's killing. Standing just feet from a military-grade Humvee, he blamed the systemic police violence on "irrational fear of black men if you're that scared of black men, you should not police black communities."
The people of Ferguson demand justice for Michael Brown, including the arrest of Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, who killed Brown. A number of groups are calling for a special prosecutor to take over the case and a Justice Department investigation into every shooting of an unarmed person of color.
Dred Scott lost in court, but eventually gained his freedom from another owner. Sadly, Scott died a year later in 1858 of tuberculosis. Miles from his final resting place, the echoes of his life and his struggles persist, amidst clouds of tear gas.
*******
Denis Moynihan contributed research to this column. Amy Goodman is the host of "Democracy Now!," a daily international TV/radio news hour airing on more than 1,200 stations in North America. She is the co-author of "The Silenced Majority," a New York Times best-seller.
It was decided against Scott in a 7 - 2 decision. Chief Justice Roger Taney was a Democrat. The six concurring justices were either Democrats or (where their political party is unclear) were appointed by Democrats.
Of the two dissenting justices, John McLean was a Republican, and Benjamin Curtis was a Whig.
Justice Curtis later resigned from the Supreme Court, partly because of his disgust with the decision.
A lot of Whigs, such as Abraham Lincoln, later became Republicans.
The cognitive dissonance of the left never fails to manifest itself.
The Conscience Whigs became Republicans. Cotton Whigs (Southern & Border state ones) joined the Democrats for the most part.
Due to start college? What college? Occidental? Columbia? Harvard? On the Klown “ghost” plan?
"The Dred Scott decision of 1857 is considered by many to be the worst one in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court. It ruled that African-Americans, whether slave or free, could not be citizens, ever."Yes, and the Roe v Wade decision was of the same ilk, employing the same sort of rationale, and even more evil than The Dred Scott decision. Roe ruled that children prior to birth are not even persons, much less citizens. And I'm sure that Amy Goodman celebrates Roe, oblivious to the moral and legal inconsistencies. Her mind is too made up to confuse with any facts, as the drivel in her article demonstrates.
“irrational fear of black men if you’re that scared of black men, you should not police black communities.”
“irrational fear of black men” No such thing. There is a
rational fear of black men. I would say a good case could
be made that there are only 3 black cops on that police
force because of this “irrational fear of black men”.
“The mayor is a Democrat and the city council are Democrats.”
Sure Santa Clause always wins in that demographic. A
“Once the ‘blacks’ have ‘whites’ as slaves,”
Already happened. How many days out of the year do you
work just to pay your taxes? What happens if you work those
days and don’t pay those taxes?
The only true freedom in this country is to have nothing
but the clothes on your back and a Harley.
“Due to start college? What college? Occidental? Columbia? Harvard? On the Klown “ghost” plan?”
Sometimes they have to go to a trade school as a condition
of their parole or probation.
“...police brutally cracked down on them.”
Oh?
When does that start?
simply amazing how far leftist will go to pretend the fatherless pillaging black community is a victim of some overturned Federal edict dead 150 years.
BTW, Dread Scot edict was technically correct on the grounds that washing ton can’t take someone’s property without due process. But Dread Scot himself was foolish to bring the case before Federal court rather than Illinois court, as the State of Illinois did have that power to free him while he resided there.
As for Linclin’s house divided speech, I would point out the racist claims of entitlement and everlasting victomhood is exactly that dividing one race against anther so that nether can live in peace together.
Barf!
Ask 97%+ of the thugs "protesting" in Ferguson, MO who/what Dred Scott is and they'll probably tell you "some Jamaican rapper."
Obviously the woman is off her meds.
Shameless ****?
Running the guilty white folk machine again. This will stop when the networks recieve thier rating points and it is zero. SHUT OFF THE MEDIA
There is almost nothing honest or right about this sentence. "Thousands protesting the killing of Brown... really? We don't know that. They could've been out for a good time and a little rioting and looting. We do know 90% of those arrested are not from Ferguson.
"Police killing" - ah, what does that mean? A cop shot and killed Brown, after being assaulted and having his skull fractured. The perp, Brown, was in the midst of assaulting the cop again with the apparent intent to kill him, at least to beat him to within an inch of his life. What is any person, even a cop to do?
"Unarmed teenager" is now Brown's first name. Brown knew he was not armed with a weapon, he did have his fists and feet, with which he'd already did damage to put the cop in the hospital. The cop didn't know that "unarmed Brown" was unarmed, in any case he had no choice but to shoot to defend his own life. Unarmed Brown knew he was unarmed, but chose to taunt the cop, "what are you going to do, shoot me"? and rush to attack him. Was Unarmed Brown reckless and heedless of his own life and that of the cop? Yes. He paid for it with his own life.
Let's say Unarmed Brown and Unarmed Trayvon had survived their encounters with armed victims, what would have happened in their lives. I'd say, barring a miracle, they would've ended up dead in a later encounter in their criminal careers.
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