John Emerson And The Civil Rights Movement Essay
One of the earliest faces of Civil Rights is Dred Scott. He was born into slavery in
Virginia in 1799. In 1836, he was sold to John Emerson. Emerson was an Army Officer and moved a lot taking Dred Scott with him to different Army posts, some in free states and some in slave states. Scott married Harriet who was also a slave. She was signed over to Emerson as a slave from her owner. They both worked for the Emerson’s as slaves for years and the
Emerson’s hired them out to others also as slaves. They both had lived on “Free Soil” for many years. When John Emerson died, he left all of his property to his wife Eliza. By then, Dred had a daughter too and offered to buy himself, his wife and daughter from Mrs. Emerson so they could live as free. She refused and Dred sued for his freedom in 1847. Because he had traveled to Free
States that had laws that when an enslaved person was brought into the state, they became free, he thought this would prove his point and he would win his freedom. The court ruled that Dred was a negro and had no rights at all. He was…