Which Supreme Court decision held that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, were not citizens and therefore could not sue in federal court?

Which Supreme Court decision held that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, were not citizens and therefore could not sue in federal court?

• A. Marbury v. Madison
• B. Dred Scott v. Sandford
• C. Brown v. Board of Education
• D. Plessy v. Ferguson

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is who counts as a citizen and who can bring a suit in federal court. The Dred Scott decision held that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, were not citizens, so they could not sue in federal court. It reflected the era’s view of race and citizenship and also blocked Congress from prohibiting slavery in new territories. This ruling stayed in effect until the Fourteenth Amendment, which grants citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States and guarantees equal protection under the law, thereby overturning Dred Scott. Other famous Supreme Court decisions addressed different issues: Marbury v. Madison established the power of judicial review; Brown v. Board of Education declared that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional; Plessy v. Ferguson upheld segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine (a standard later discarded).

The main idea here is who counts as a citizen and who can bring a suit in federal court. The Dred Scott decision held that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, were not citizens, so they could not sue in federal court. It reflected the era’s view of race and citizenship and also blocked Congress from prohibiting slavery in new territories. This ruling stayed in effect until the Fourteenth Amendment, which grants citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States and guarantees equal protection under the law, thereby overturning Dred Scott.

Other famous Supreme Court decisions addressed different issues: Marbury v. Madison established the power of judicial review; Brown v. Board of Education declared that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional; Plessy v. Ferguson upheld segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine (a standard later discarded).