AP US History

Answer - D - In the 1857 Dred Scott Case, the Supreme Court ruled that African American men had no rights that white men were beholden to respect.

Key Takeaway: Supreme Court Justice Roger Taney attempted to discontinue all conflict over the issue of slavery using the Dred Scott Case in 1857. Dred Scott had once been a slave in Missouri and then traveled North to Illinois and Michigan as a free man. Scott then decided to sue Missouri for his freedom.

Roger Taney faced three questions in the case: Was Dred Scott an America citizen? Did Scott become free in Missouri because he traveled as a free man to free states? And finally, could Congress prohibit slavery in territories that were yet to become states? Justice Taney answered no to all three, which led to the conclusion that African American men had no rights that white men were beholden to respect.