The Dred and Harriet Scott

Reconciliation Forum Participants

April 29, 2011

Bertram Hayes-Davis is the president of the Davis Family Association, which was founded in 1978. The organization promotes the historic significance of the descendants of Samuel and Jane Cook Davis, the parents of Jefferson Davis and his eight brothers and sisters.

He serves as the vice president of the Papers of Jefferson Davis at Rice University in Houston. He is also an emeritus member of the board of Beauvior and the Jefferson Davis Library in Biloxi, Miss.

Hayes-Davis has supported events centered on Davis' historic sites, which include the rededication of the First White House of the Confederacy and the Confederate Memorial in Montgomery, Ala. He has also spoken to many of the regional and national conventions of many Southern organizations.

In 1895, the Mississippi Legislature changed his family's name from Hayes to Hayes-Davis to keep the name Davis in the family.

My name is Pauline Copes-Johnson.  I was born August 23, 1927, in Auburn, New York to Guy and Jennie Gaskin Copes.  I am fourth of five children.  I am related to Aunt Harriet Ross Tubman thru my grandmother on my Mothers' side, which makes me a great grandniece.   I was baptized in and a member of Thompson Memorial African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church.  I learned to play the piano at the age of six and continue to play for our church. 

I was educated in Auburn public schools and graduated from West High School in Auburn in 1945, and attended Auburn Community College for 2 years.  I became the first African American telephone operator in Auburn, and Cayuga County with the New York Telephone Company.  I worked at Red Star Express Lines as a Secretary for 19 years, hired in 1968 and retired in 1987, while there I became a Notary Public.  I joined the Green Thumb organization, worked at Auburn Prison, Cayuga County Historians Office, and the Harriet Tubman Home as a docent.  I am now fully retired.    I have traveled extensively throughout the U.S., and went to Ghana, Africa giving presentations on Aunt Harriet, keeping her name alive.


Dr. Alveda C. King works toward her purpose in life, to glorify God.

Dr. King currently serves as a Pastoral Associate and Director of African-American Outreach for Priests for Life and Gospel of Life Ministries. She is also a voice for the Silent No More Awareness Campaign, sharing her testimony of two abortions, God’s forgiveness, and healing.

The daughter of the late civil rights activist Rev. A.D. King and his wife Naomi Barber King, Alveda grew up in the civil rights movement led by her uncle, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Her family home in Birmingham, Alabama, was bombed, as was her father’s church office in Louisville, Kentucky. Alveda was jailed during the open housing movement. She sees the pro-life movement as a continuation of the civil rights struggle.

Dr. King is a former college professor and served in the Georgia State House of Representatives. She is a best selling author; among her books are How Can the Dream Survive if we Murder the Children? and I Don’t Want Your Man, I Want My Own. She is an accomplished actress and songwriter. The Founder of King for America, Inc., Alveda is also the recipient of a Doctorate of Laws degree from Saint Anselm College and sits on the Board of Georgia Right to Life.

Dr. King lives in Atlanta, where she is the grateful mother of six and a doting grandmother.

Lynne M. Jackson is one of the great-great granddaughters of Dred and Harriet Scott.  She was determined that the family should play a significant role in the 150th anniversary of the Dred Scott Decision. With her parents, John and Marcy Madison, she founded the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation. The Foundation’s vision includes playing a pivotal role in Commemoration, Education and Reconciliation of our collective history with the Dred Scott Decision of 1857 as a starting point.

She is often requested to speak around the country on the history of her ancestors to such groups as The National Association of Attorney Generals Annual Conference of 2007, Dred Scott Symposiums at Washington University and Harvard University and The Inaugural Underground Railroad Institute Conference at Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky. There being none in existence, she and the foundation work to assure that there will be a statue of Dred and Harriet in St. Louis.

Lynne holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. During her career, she has held management positions at The Girl Scout Council of Greater St. Louis, Cass Information Systems, Ford Motor Company and Bryan Cave LLP.

Lynne is a native of St. Louis. She has served as Sunday School Teacher, Superintendent of Junior High Sunday School and Vacation Bible School director.  She was formally trained in classical piano and graduated from the Alleda Ward Wells Piano Studio. She is married to her devoted husband, Brian Jackson, who she met in high school. Together, they have taught biblical apologetics for over 20 years. They have two grown children, Chris and Sherrie.

Shannon Antonio Lanier is a spiritually grounded, energetic, and inspiring young man. He's dedicated his life to not only making a positive and impactful difference in the lives of his family members, but he strives to do the same for everyone he meets.

As co-author of the Random House book, “Jefferson’s Children: The Story of One American Family,” and 9th generation descendant of President Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings, Lanier has spent many years giving keynote speeches and presentations on multiculturalism and race relations. Although his most recent topics have focused on the Jefferson family, what Lanier enjoys most is empowering people to step out on faith to make a difference in their life and the lives of others.
 Photo credit: Jane Feldman

Christopher Truscott is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Brown College in Mendota Heights, Minn.  He has an MA in Political Science from Minnesota State University in Mankato.   He is a 9th generation descendant of President Thomas and Martha Jefferson.  Christopher Truscott is a former journalist who now occasionally works as a political strategist. He's a veteran of two dozen local, state and federal campaigns over the last 10 years.   He is the author of two novels "A Referendum on Conscience" and "Stumbling Forward". When he's not obsessing about politics, he can usually be found watching the Minnesota Twins or telling people about his cats, Benny and Boo. He lives in a suburb of St. Paul, Minn.

  Jon McLean is the Great-Great-Great Nephew of Justice John McLean. Justice John McLean was one of two dissenting justices on the Dred Scott Case.