Rushing things can have unintended, and deadly, consequences. The Court here considers women as little more than a public resource, which is, interestingly enough, exactly what the Nazis did. In order to preserve the strength of the race, the state will decide how many hours women are allowed to work. "The physical wellbeing of women becomes an object of public interest and care in order to preserve the strength of the race." In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court upheld the statute and essentially took government ownership of women and their actions: The owner of the Grand Laundry, where she worked, was charged and convicted of breaking the law and a misdemeanor. Gotcher dared cross that line, and punishment was swift. no female be employed in any mechanical establishment, or factory, or laundry in this state more than ten hours during any one day." In 1903, Oregon enacted a statute regulating the working hours of women, which stated: Muller took the “nanny state” concept literally. "The unhappy black race were separated from the white by indelible marks, and laws long before established, and were never thought of or spoken of except as property." In one part of the opinion, Chief Justice Taney goes so far as to say blacks were never thought of as any more than possessions: In one of the most infamous cases in history, the Court ruled Scott could not sue because people of African descent were not protected by the Constitution and not U.S. When he tried to sue for his family’s freedom, and was turned down, he took his case to federal court. Scott, an African American born in the United States, had lived as a slave in both free and slave states. In any summation of the worst Supreme Court rulings in history, Dred Scott must come first. Let’s look back at some of the worst decisions in history, and hope the nation’s highest court can avoid repeating these devastating blows to justice. With everything from the controversial Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA) to race conscious university admissions policies on the docket, it will continue to determine the course of policy in America. The Supreme Court is going to have a full docket this year.
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