Daniel Peabody.
In one of the darkest moments of United States jurisprudence, Chief Justice Roger Taney listed a “parade of horribles” that would result if freed African-Americans were considered “citizens.” This list included the idea that “persons of the negro race, who were recognized as citizens in any one State of the Union,” would have the right “to keep and carry arms wherever they went.” The Dred Scott Court considered African-Americans carrying firearms as too much to bear. While the Dred Scott Court sought to limit minorities’ rights to bear arms when defining “citizen,” the Supreme Court must soon consider protecting the rights of minorities to bear arms when defining the word “bear” in the Second Amendment.