Beginning of Essay
America has undergone incredible hardships as a nation. No issue has had more impact on the development of the American definition of freedom than the issue of slavery. Did the Constitution specify which men were created equal? Surprisingly enough the phrase "a ....

Middle of Essay
.... of Independence and the meaning of those words as they related to American citizens and the celebration of the 4th of July. Many American's argued that the Negroes were not entitled to the same rights because they were not legally citizens of the United States of America. This issue was dealt with in the ruling of the Dredd Scott case. Lincoln points out that the ruling of the case was based on historical fact that was wrongly assumed. Judge Taney, who presided over the case stated that "Negroes were no part of the people who made, or for whom was made, the Declaration of Independence, or the Constitution of the United States." This ....