Texes Social Studies Content Practice Exam

Which of the following reversed the Supreme Court decision made in the court case Dred Scott vs Sanford?

1. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

2. The Fourteenth Amendment

3. The Kansas-Nebraska Act

4. The Compromise of 1850

The correct answer is: The Fourteenth Amendment

The Fourteenth Amendment is the correct answer because it established citizenship for all persons born or naturalized in the United States, which directly addressed and reversed the ruling in Dred Scott vs. Sanford. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that African Americans could not be citizens and therefore had no legal standing to sue in federal court. The ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 ensured that all individuals, including former slaves, were recognized as citizens, thus overturning the core premise of the Dred Scott decision regarding citizenship and legal rights. The other options do not relate directly to the reversal of the Dred Scott decision. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War and regulated lands and boundaries but did not address issues of citizenship or rights for African Americans. The Kansas-Nebraska Act introduced the concept of popular sovereignty regarding slavery in new territories but did not directly counter the implications of the Dred Scott ruling. The Compromise of 1850 was a series of legislative measures aimed at resolving tensions over slavery but also did not nullify the Dred Scott decision. Thus, the Fourteenth Amendment represents a crucial legal transformation that directly countered the Supreme Court's previous stance on citizenship established in Dred Scott vs. Sanford.