Justice John McLean, in his dissent to the decision in the case Scott v. Sandford (1857), pointed out Taney's historical errors. He emphasize the time of the Founding of the United States, and how several states had admitted free persons of the color to the suffrage-thereby recognizing them as citizens and few other arguments he and Justice Curtis made…
According to Nussbaum; Hiding from Humanity, Justice McLean’s dissent in aspect to racism as per this case was about; basically pointed out the Justice Taney’s historical errors, how irrational the decision was towards fellow human being; Dred Scott, how disgusted Justice Taney and others were and making such decision of how Scott cannot be called a citizen of the United States. As Nussbaum as said:
“Disgust relies on moral obtuseness. It is possible to view another human being as a slimy slug or a piece of revolting trash only if one has never made a serious good-faith attempt to see the world through that person’s eyes or to experience that person’s feelings. Disgust imputes to the other a subhuman nature. How, by contrast, do we ever become able to see one another as human? Only through the exercise of imagination.”
This quote in this case explains how Justice McLean tend to emphasize that the other justices did not show much compassion before making the harsh decision they made against Dred Scott as per they saw him as just a slave, minority; a piece of property and not human just like they are. But in fact, McLean showed much compassion as well as Justice Curtis, they sympathized with Scott in ‘good-faith’, saw and felt what he was going through even though the majority opinion still prevailed.
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