Not Even Past: Dred Scott Reprise

About this episode

The episode explores the historical significance of Dred Scott v. Sandford and its implications for reconciliation in the present day.

Dred Scott v. Sandford is one of the most infamous cases in Supreme Court history: in 1857, an enslaved person named Dred Scott filed a suit for his freedom and lost. In his decision, Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney wrote that Black men “had no rights which the white man was bound to respect.” One Civil War and more than a century later, the Taneys and the Scotts reunite at a Hilton in Missouri to figure out what reconciliation looks like in the 21st century. Voices in the episode include: • Lynne Jackson — great-great-granddaughter of Dred and Harriet Scott, and president and founder of the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation • Dred Scott Madison — great-great-grandson of Dred Scott • Barbara McGregory — great-great-granddaughter of Dred Scott • Charlie Taney — great-great-grandnephew of Roger Brooke Taney, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court who wrote the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision • Richard Josey — Manager of Programs at the Minnesota Historical Society Learn more: • 1857: Dred Scott v. Sandford • The Dred Scott Heritage Foundation Special thanks to Kate Taney Billingsley, whose play, "A Man of His Time," inspired the episode; and to Soren Shade for production help. Additional…

People in this episode

Guests: Lynne Jackson, Dred Scott Madison, Barbara McGregory, Charlie Taney, Richard Josey

Topics covered

• Dred Scott
• Supreme Court
• reconciliation
• history
• civil rights

Keywords

• Dred Scott Heritage Foundation
• Roger Brooke Taney
• Civil War
• Black rights

Mentioned in this episode

Products: A Man of His Time

Books & works: Dred Scott v. Sandford, A Man of His Time

Places: Missouri

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