Read the passage from the opinion of the court in Dred Scott v. Sandford, written by Justice Taney. The question before us is, whether the class of persons described in the plea in abatement compose a portion of this people, and are constituent members of this sovereignty? We think they are not, and that they are not included, and were not intended to be included, under the word "citizens" in the Constitution, and can therefore claim none of the rights and privileges which that instrument provides for and secures to citizens of the United States. On the contrary, they were at that time considered as a subordinate and inferior class of beings, who had been subjugated by the dominant race, and, whether emancipated or not, yet remained subject to their authority, and had no rights or privileges but such as those who held the power and the Government might choose to grant them. What type of logical error underlies the argument that Black people were inferior?
The argument relies on the claim that Black people were “considered” inferior by the dominant group at the time. Treating a belief as true because many people—or a powerful group—held it is an appeal to popularity, or ad populum. Being widely regarded as inferior does not prove that people actually are inferior or lack rights.
AI-written and checked against the verified answer.