To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the infamous Dred Scott ruling, Washington University will be hosting a symposium called “The Dred Scott Case and its Legacy: Race, Law and the Struggle for Equality” this weekend.
A series of distinguished speakers, including legal scholars, historians, direct descendents of Dred Scott and six out of the seven Missouri State Supreme Court judges will be giving talks during the symposium. The keynote address will be delivered by the Honorable Michael Wolff, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri, on Friday at 4 p.m. in Graham Chapel. Professor Jack Greenberg, who argued the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka in 1954, will be a commentator on Saturday.
“This case marks the first great civil rights case in American history. One could argue that the legal battle of the civil rights of African-Americans began here in St. Louis in 1846,” said David Konig, Director of Legal Studies, professor of history and law and one of the chief organizers of the event.
The symposium’s purpose is not to celebrate, but to commemorate the Dred Scott case which eventually ended with the racist ruling by the United States Supreme Court in 1857 that all persons of African descent did not have any legal rights and could never be citizens.
“It is important to commemorate this event because the struggle for equality is something that has not come to its conclusion. This case is a vivid reminder of how bad things once were, and where we need to be in order to have true equality,” said John Baugh, director of African and African-American Studies and one of the symposium’s co-planners. “The consequences of slavery are still with us and need to be addressed with care and attentiveness.”
According to Konig, the symposium’s purpose is to place this historical case in the context of the present.
“Legal scholars are constantly making us aware of the fact that the law is supposed to be color blind, but that it certainly isn’t,” he said.
Speakers will also consider contemporary legal issues which concern not only African Americans, but also anyone who is denied full civil rights, such as the detainees in Guantanamo Bay who were recently refused the right of habeas corpus.
The symposium, which is free and open to the public, is geared toward academics as well as the St. Louis community. “The symposium combines a scholarly conference with community outreach, which is quite unusual,” said Konig. Hundreds of postcard invitations were sent to K-12 educators and there will be a special presentation focused on how teachers can incorporate the case’s civic issues into their curricula.
The University, as well as the St. Louis community, has reason to celebrate its historic involvement in the case. “One of the most important things about the case is that the jury that voted here in St. Louis voted to give the Scotts liberty. The Supreme Court overturned that decision. White citizens, and all St. Louis citizens, should take pride in the progressive position that was put forward by this jury,” said Baugh.
In recent years, many universities have begun to confront their historic connections to slavery. Brown University, which was initially endowed largely by wealth acquired through slavery, instituted a Steering Committee on Slavery and Justice in 2003.
Unlike Brown, Washington University has a legacy for “being on the right side of history,” said Konig, because it was founded by abolitionists. William Greenleaf Eliot, one of the university’s co-founders, would buy slaves so that he could free them. He also educated slaves during a time at which it was illegal to do so.
Today, the University and the St. Louis community are at the foreground of efforts to commemorate the anniversary of the Dred Scott case. “On a national level, we would like to make it clear that St. Louis is taking the lead. The University is giving this case the upfront focus it deserves. I don’t think there is any similar anniversary taking place anywhere in the country,” said Konig.
“I am very proud of what we are doing here in St. Louis. To the best of my knowledge, the event will be the premier event celebrating the 150th,” said Baugh.
Konig and Baugh both said that the Dred Scott case is frequently a topic in their courses in law, history, and African-American studies.
“It comes up all the time. It’s unavoidable. It’s a boulder in the road that has to be encountered,” said Konig.