Dred Scott Reading Questions

What was the Dred Scott decision?

• A Supreme Court decision in 1857 that held that African Americans could never be citizens of the United States
• A Supreme Court decision in 1857 that held that slavery was unconstitutional
• A federal law passed in 1857 that abolished slavery in the United States
• A Supreme Court decision in 1857 that granted freedom to all slaves

How did Dred Scott become a slave?

• He was born into slavery
• He was sold by his owner to a plantation owner
• He was captured and brought to the United States
• He was given as a gift to his owner

What were the two key questions that the Supreme Court had to decide in the Dred Scott case?

• Whether Dred Scott was a citizen with the right to bring a case before a federal court, and whether his time in Wisconsin made him a free man
• Whether slavery was unconstitutional, and whether Congress had the power to make any laws concerning slavery in the territories
• Whether Dred Scott was guilty of a crime, and whether he should be executed
• Whether Dred Scott should be allowed to purchase his freedom, and whether he should be compensated for his time as a slave

What did Chief Justice Taney hope to achieve with the Dred Scott decision?

• To settle the slavery controversy once and for all
• To free Dred Scott and all other slaves in the United States
• To establish himself as a champion of the abolitionist movement
• To gain political favor with the slaveholding states

How did Northerners react to the Dred Scott decision?

• They were stunned and enraged

• They were delighted and hoped that slavery would expand further into the territories

• They were indifferent and did not care about the decision

• They were divided in their opinions