Dredd Scott Decision Essay -- Supreme Court Scott v. Sanford

INTRODUCTION United States Supreme Court case Scott v. Sanford (1857), commonly known as the Dred Scott Case, is probably the most famous case of the nineteenth century (with the exception possibly of Marbury v. Madison). It is one of only four cases in U. S. history that has ever been overturned by a Constitutional amendment (overturned by the 13th and 14th Amendments). It is also, along with Marbury, one of only two cases prior to the Civil War that declared a federal law unconstitutional. This case may have also been one of the most, if not the most, controversial case in American history, due simply to the fact that it dealt an explosive opinion on an issue already prepared to erupt - slavery. Thus, many scholars assert that the Dred Scott case may have almost single-handedly ignited the ever growing slavery issue into violence, culminating ultimately into the American Civil War. It effectively brought many abolitionists and anti-slavery proponents, particularly in the North, "ov er the edge". BACKGROUND Dred Scott was a slave born in Virginia who early in life moved with his owner to St. Louis, Missouri. At this time, due to the Missouri Compromise of 1820, Missouri was added as a slave state, but no state may allow slavery if that state falls above the 36 degree 30 minute latitudinal line. Later, in 1854 under the Kansas-Nebraska Act, states were allowed to vote on whether they will allow slavery or not, known commonly as popular sovereignty. In St. Louis, Scott was sold to an army surgeon named Dr. John Emerson in 1833. A year later, Emerson, on a tour of duty, took Scott, his slave, to Illinois, a free state. In 1836, Emerson's military career then took the both of them to the free Wisconsin territory known today as Minnesota. Both of these states, it is important to recognize, where both free states and both above the 36 degree 30 minute line. While Emerson and Scott were in Wisconsin, Scott married Harriet Robinson, another slave, and ownership of her was subsequently transferred to Emerson. Dr. Emerson himself took a bride while on a tour of duty in Louisiana, named Eliza Irene Sanford, whose family happened to live in St. Louis. While the slaves (Dred and Harriet) stayed in St. Louis with Eliza and the rest of the family, Dr. Emerson was posted in Florida in 1842, where the Seminole war was being fought. He returned a year later but died within... ...dment, which abolished slavery altogether, and the 14th Amendment, which pronounced all persons born in the United States to be citizens of the U.S. regardless of color or "previous condition of servitude." Also, this case was the first to employ the substantive due process clause which would be referred to again later in many other cases. AREAS FOR FURTHER STUDY There was one specific issue that puzzled me, and I confess I was unable to find any adequate answer to the query. I am referring to how a slave, in this case Dred Scott, was able to marry another slave, Harriet Robinson, in the free territory of Wisconsin, which was well above the 36 degree 30 minute line. Why was she a slave at all? Hadn't the Missouri Compromise, still constitutional in the 1830's, eliminated slavery there? Or perhaps she was not "technically" a slave at all but a free black living in that territory, then why would she marry a slave? And if she did, why would she then fall under the ownership of Dr. E merson if she had already been freed? This is an area I would suggest further research be employed so that our understanding of the slavery situation in the territories at this time be more fully enhanced.

A Value Based Society for Our Future Essay

Present day society has seen its share of the erosion of values ever since the dawn of technology. It is as if these values were being thrown aside for technology to take its place. And technology like a dark mist shrouding the values of a person making what we know today as materialism. This obviously puts forth proof of how flawed society can be without values being the base of it. The vision of how our future society is intended to be is undoubtedly a utopia where peace and harmony is above all else. Currently our world and society faces violence, on a general scope of this issue would be the occurrence of war, Wars in the past have been fueled by a difference of values. Now what are values you might ask, as defined by the oxford’s advanced learner’s English dictionary, values are beliefs about what is right and wrong and what is important in life. Since values are a belief on what is important in life, it is necessary that the right belief is instilled within an individual of a society, so as not to create any forms of false society norms. The topic which I intend to highlight today would be the examples of values that communities in the society should practice and apply. As well as reasons to support my points of view. From my perspective on the topic, I feel that it is important to have the values of Change, Tolerance, Teamwork and Honesty First and foremost, Change, a value portraying the will of an individual to undergo a course of development for the better. Before dwelling on what type of values should be instilled in an individual or how do we apply these values, We have to first realise the importance of possessing this will for a better change, because without this most important criteria, the instilling of new values to improve our society is impossible. Allow me to give you an analogy, what is the use of knowing what is a value which benefits society when you have no will to act so? This depicts how actions speak louder than words, and in this case the will to act is indeed very important. Secondly the value which I would like to highlight on is Tolerance. Tolerance is the willingness to accept somebody/something, especially opinions or behaviour that you may not agree with. This value plays a key role in creating an environment of peace and harmony, Because tolerance is the solution for the difference of values of which people possess, and definitely the first step to achieving peace between individuals of different values would be the acceptance of one another. To apply this in a real-life situation, when someone sees things in a different perspective, don’t discriminate or brand him weird, instead try and see things from that person’s perspectives to understand him. And if both or more parties understand and can tolerate each other, misunderstandings will be reduced and harmony on the other hand will be promoted. Moving on, I would like to emphasize on the value of teamwork. Teamwork is cooperative or coordinated effort of a group in the interests of a common cause which is usually effective. And if a value based society is the goal to reach, then it would suggest that those who are a part of the society should chip in their efforts in order to make the goal a reality instead of continuing to encase it in dreamland. Teamwork is definitely a very dear value if a better future is the main focus of the goal in the future. Teamwork can be easily applied in everyday life, for instance, when you and another person are made in-charge of something. Do not do that ‘something’ alone, because this would lead to poor results due to miscommunication. With teamwork, everything would be set just right because the resources to accomplish something are multiplied. Lastly I would like to bring forth the value of Honesty. Honesty is the quality of never hiding the truth of something. And in a value based society for the future, honesty plays a big role as well. Because through honesty, will trust be promoted. To explain this, honesty means that everyone is truthful with one another, this can break down the cautious barrier between people which has been inhibiting them from understanding and trusting each other well for a long time. And without trust let me remind everyone here, a good society is impossible to be achieved because people of both sides spend their time and effort on the precautions about one another. As a conclusion, Society in the future will have no improvement if values such as change, tolerance, teamwork as well as honesty are not what the society is based on. And society will continue to fall if these values continue to be seen as negligible in the eyes of the modern society.

The Influence of Pressure Groups on the Government Essay

The Influence of Pressure Groups on the Government This essay will outline the significance to which pressure groups have an influence on government and explain how they have fared under New Labour governments. Whilst the term ‘pressure groups’ may be relatively new, the concept itself dates back as far as 1787. The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade was led by William Wilberforce and Thomas Clarkson and successfully campaigned for the abolition of the slave trade. (Jones, 2004, p233) Pressure groups are formed by a group of people who share a common interest or goal. The intention of the group is to raise the profile or the cause and/or advance it. Unlike political†¦show more content†¦Insider groups will regularly be consulted by the government. This consultative role is built up if a group has demonstrated a number of features: Authority – the ability of the group to speak on behalf of all of its members. Information – the group has expertise and information on a specific subject. Compatibility – of the objectives with that of the government. Compatibility – of the groups objectives with public sympathies. Track record – of giving good advice. Possession of powerful sanctions – if a group has the ability to seriously affect society through withdrawal of their services their interests may be viewed more sympathetically. (Jones, 2004, p239) Governments recognise the usefulness of pressure groups as a valuable source of information and expertise in helping them formulate policies. Governments will often consult with insider groups to find out about problems with their current policies along with suggestions for how this could be improved or to gauge negative feedback to new policies. By consulting the insider groups, government can also lend legitimacy to the policy. This is referred to as policy networking. 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