Just read - no comments needed

[My Name Is Kate]

My understanding is that the U.S. Constitution, insofar as it recognized the legality of slavery, was immoral (in an absolute sense, and disregarding the time period in which it was written.)

Who among the Founding Fathers demanded that the references to slavery be included in the Constitution? Or were they all united against slavery, but other people demanded it be included? If the Founding Fathers were conflicted on the slavery issue, how would Supreme Court judges be able to determine what their intention was when writing the Constitution? Wouldn't they be forced to rule based on the actual references to slavery in the Constitution? The fact that a slave was counted as 3/5 of a white person is proof that slaves did not have the same constitutional rights as white people.

As regards post #68 above, IMO, Taney was stating historical facts, not his own personal opinion. It supports the view that his decision in the Dred Scott ruling was intended to uphold the Constitution, and was not just an interpretation of what the Founding Fathers intended.