Listen free for 30 days

Thousands of incredible audiobooks and podcasts to take wherever you go.
Immerse yourself in a world of storytelling with the Plus Catalogue - unlimited listening to thousands of select audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
American Legends: The Life of Dred Scott and the Dred Scott Decision cover art

American Legends: The Life of Dred Scott and the Dred Scott Decision

By: Charles River Editors
Narrated by: Mark Stahr
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £3.89

Buy Now for £3.89

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

  • Includes the full text of the Dred Scott decision and every opinion written by the Supreme Court justices.
  • Analyzes the Dred Scott decision and its impact on future civil rights cases.

"The question is simply this: Can a negro, whose ancestors were imported into this country, and sold as slaves, become a member of the political community formed and brought into existence by the Constitution of the United States, and as such become entitled to all the rights, and privileges, and immunities, guarantied by that instrument to the citizen? " (Dred Scott v. Sanford)

Dred Scott was an unlikely candidate to become the impetus and rallying cry of a brand-new political party in the mid-19th century. Born into slavery in Virginia as Sam Scott, the young slave took the name of his older brother, Dred, after Dred's death. He moved throughout Southern slave states as property of the Blow family until he was sold to US Army doctor John Emerson in St. Louis, Missouri. Emerson's commission in the army eventually brought him to the Wisconsin Territory in 1836, which was north of the line established by the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and was thus free territory where slavery was illegal. Naturally Emerson brought his slaves along with him, and Dred Scott lived for an extended period of time in free territory, his slave status being a violation of the Missouri Compromise, the Northwest Ordinance, and the Wisconsin Enabling Act.

By 1840 Dred Scott had married another slave of Emerson's, named Harriet, and the couple had a child. Desperate to shake off the yoke of slavery but unable to buy his family's freedom, Scott sued for his freedom in Missouri, arguing that once he had entered free territory he could no longer be a slave.

©2012 Charles River Editors (P)2015 Charles River Editors

What listeners say about American Legends: The Life of Dred Scott and the Dred Scott Decision

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

No Reviews are Available
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Cedric R. Ross
  • Cedric R. Ross
  • 12-12-22

Helpful Account But Lacking

Helpful in clarifying the legal argument of the decision but lacked depth. Left me seeking more analysis.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Eddie Rigdon
  • Eddie Rigdon
  • 20-05-22

God’s providence at work.

This review of an American legend was powerful, insightful and a history that needs to be total.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for D Paige
  • D Paige
  • 24-11-21

Great lesson about equality.

I found that this book illuminated the translation of what and who is considered a citizen. Also, how someone defined as property has to fight to be acknowledged as human.