Question

Why did the Sugar Act and the Stamp Act draw fierce opposition from colonists? Explain how colonial reactions to the Stamp Act might have been socially irresponsible.

Answer 1

The sugar and stamp acts were imposed on American colonists. The acts acted as a "common fundraising vehicle" in England for paying off debts and defending the expanse of newly acquired American territories in the Seven Years’ War against the French (1756-1763). The Stamps Act of 1765 was the legislation of direct tax imposed on all commercial and legal printable materials in the American colonies ranging from newspapers and pamphlets to playing cards and dice. At the time, the colonists experienced a financial shock of three major taxes. The Sugar Act (1764) imposed new duties on imports of textiles, wines, coffee, and sugar. The Currency Act (1764) led to a major decrease in the value of the paper money used by colonists. The Quartering Act (1765) which mandated the colonists to provide food and lodging to British troops. The sugar and the stamp acts were perceived by the colonists as an attempt to sabotage the economic strength and independence of the colonists. The colonists perceived the Acts as an attempt to exploit the colonies as a means of revenue and raw materials. This left the colonists with no choice but to draft the “Declaration of Rights and Grievances,” as an attempt to reject the autocratic policies of the British empire. The taxes were perceived as "taxation without representation" as a repercussion of which the colonists dumped the tea in Boston Harbor in protest. Moreover, these taxes were imposed by their colonial legislatures. It was being imposed by the British Parliament to favour their own interests.

The colonial reaction to the Stamp Act was socially irresponsible because it led to socially undesirable behaviours manifested in protests and mobs. Protests and mobs are not civic courses of action. They are rather irresponsible forms of actions that only lead to upheavals and chaos. The protests were consolidated by the support of Colonial assemblymen and Merchants. The protests were not motivated by the need to attain one's rightful independence but mostly by boredom, long-standing grudges, booze, and a desire for conflict. This manifested in harassment, intimidation, and violence against the royal Britishers. To amend something wrong, we cannot choose the wrong course of action or do something wrong. Protests and mobs are not peaceful ways to amend the wrongdoings of others. This made the colonial reactions to the stamp act socially irresponsible.