#Monument to Dred and Harriet Scott

[ausetkmt]

NPR: Congress votes to remove a bust of the Dred Scott decision's author from the Capitol

The House gave final passage to legislation to replace the bust of Roger Taney, the Supreme Court justice who wrote the Dred Scott decision, in the Capitol with one of Thurgood Marshall, the first Black person to serve on the high court.

The notorious 1857 Dred Scott decision upheld slavery and established that Black people were not U.S. citizens. The legislation, which passed Wednesday and now heads to President Biden's desk, says the bust is "unsuitable for the honor of display to the many visitors to the Capitol."

The statue of Taney sits at the entrance of the Old Supreme Court Chamber in the Capitol where the Supreme Court met from 1810 to 1860. Taney, the fifth chief justice, led the court from 1836 to 1864.

"While the removal of Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney's bust from the Capitol does not relieve the Congress of the historical wrongs it committed to protect the institution of slavery, it expresses Congress's recognition of one of the most notorious wrongs to have ever taken place in one of its rooms, that of Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney's Dred Scott v. Sandford decision," the legislation says.

Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh ordered the removal of four Confederate monuments, including one of Taney, in 2017. Just two days later, Maryland removed another statue of Taney, who also served as the state's attorney general, from State House grounds.

"Taney's ruling denied Black Americans citizenship, upheld slavery, and contributed, frankly, to the outbreak of the Civil War," Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said on the U.S. House floor on Wednesday. "That's why I and so many others advocated for his statue's removal from the Maryland State House."

Congress has voted to replace Taney's bust at the U.S. Capitol with one of Thurgood Marshall, the first Black associate justice of the Supreme Court. Bob Schutz/AP

Congress has voted to replace Taney's bust at the U.S. Capitol with one of Thurgood Marshall, the first Black associate justice of the Supreme Court.

Bob Schutz/AP

Taney's bust must be removed within 45 days of the enactment of the bill and a bust of Marshall must be obtained within two years, according to the legislation.

"In removing Taney's bust, I'm not asking that we would hold Taney's to today's moral standards," Hoyer said. "On the contrary, let us hold him who the standard of his contemporaries, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln ... and all of those who understood that the enslavement of others has always been an immoral act."

[thorsenmark]

A Statue of Dred and Harriet Scott in Front of the Old Courthouse (Gateway Arch National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: Here I went with a portrait orientation to capture the full height of structures to my front, from the statue to the old courthouse and skies above. I finished up the post-production work by using color control points in Capture NX2 on the construction work just behind the fenced area.

[st-louis-posts-blog]

St. Louis Gateway Arch Museum

Saint Louis Tourist Places: St. Louis Gateway Arch Museum Founded By The National Park Service In 1935 To Commemorate Thomas Jefferson’s Vision Of A Transcontinental United States, The Gateway Arch National Park (Formerly Known As The “Jefferson National Expansion Memorial”) Stretches From The Old Courthouse To The Steps Overlooking The Mississippi River. In Between, The Gateway Arch Rises High, A Bold Monument To The Pioneering Spirit. Today, The Gateway Arch Celebrates The Diverse People Who Shaped The Region And The Country. The Dreamer, Thomas Jefferson, Negotiated The Louisiana Purchase In 1803, Doubling The Size Of The United States. The Explorers, Lewis & Clark And Their Shoshone Guide Sacagawea, Scouted The New Territory And Mapped A Route To The Pacific Ocean. The Challengers, Dred, And Harriet Scott, Filed Suit At The Old Courthouse For Their Freedom From Slavery, And St. Louis Suffragette Virginia Minor Sued For Women’s Right To Vote. The Artist, Architect Eero Saarinen, Designed The Monument That Honors Them All. The Monument We Know Today Began In 1935 When President Franklin D. Roosevelt Designated Property Along The St. Louis Riverfront To Be Developed As The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (Now Known As Gateway Arch National Park). While The Land Was Cleared For Construction, The City Of St. Louis Deeded The Old Courthouse To The National Park Service To Be Incorporated Into The Memorial. In 1948, A Nationwide Design Competition Determined What Shape The Memorial Would Take, And In 1963, Construction Began On Architect Eero Saarinen’s Design For A Stainless Steel Arch. Completed In 1965, The Gateway Arch Stands As A Symbol Of National Identity And An Iconic Example Of Mid-Century Modern Design. Anchoring The West End Of The Park, The Old Courthouse Is A Prime Example Of Mid-19th Century Federal Architecture. Built-In 1839, The Courthouse Served As The Site Of A Number Of Landmark Civil Rights Cases, Including The Dred Scott Decision. In The 1830s, The Enslaved Scott Was Taken To Free Territory In Illinois And Wisconsin Before Being Brought Back To Missouri. In 1847 And 1850, Under Missouri’s “Once Free, Always Free” Doctrine, Scott Sued For His Freedom At The St. Louis Courthouse. In 1857, The U.S. Supreme Court Decided Against Scott And His Wife Harriet, Ruling That African-Americans Were Not Citizens And Had No Right To Sue In Court. Dissent Over The Decision Helped To Speed The Start Of The U.S. Civil War Four Years Later.