"We think... that they [African Americans] are not included, and were not intended to be included, under the word 'citizens' in the Constitution, and can therefore claim none of the rights and privileges which that instrument provides for and secures to citizens of the United States... the right of property in a slave is distinctly and expressly affirmed in the Constitution." — Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, Dred Scott v. Sandford, 1857
Lincoln's "House Divided" speech (1858) responded to this ruling by arguing that
- A
the Constitution required immediate emancipation throughout the Union
- B
the federal courts should be abolished and reconstituted by Congress
- Ccheck_circle
a coordinated proslavery conspiracy threatened to nationalize slavery
- D
slavery should be permitted only in the original thirteen states
Explanation
Lincoln warned the nation could not remain "half slave and half free" and accused Pierce, Buchanan, Douglas, and Taney of conspiring to legalize slavery nationwide. He did not call for abolishing courts, restricting slavery to original states, or immediate emancipation.