The Stamp Act

The Stamp Act
In march of 1765 a new tax called the stamp act was passed. It required colonists to pay tax on everything that was printed, and this of course affected their everyday life.  The colonists felt this stamp act threatened their prosperity and liberty, and questioned parliament's rights to tax them directly. They felt that if they were to accept this tax they would have to accept other's to come. However, Parliament did not understand why wouldn't they pay taxes. The empire needed money and parliament felt they had the right to levy taxes on the colonists.

Even though the tax was passed on March 1765 it wasn't in effect until November of the same year, but a lot of events happened in between. Colonists began to protest intensely in 3 different ways: intellectual, violent intimidations, and economic boycotts. Prepared and educated people would give speeches defying the taxes, while others would assault the tax collectors by tarring and feathering. The angry colonists even got to the point of destroying Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Thomas Hutchinson after he denounced the riots, this stopped anyone from even daring to do something in favor of the stamp act.

Colonial leaders organized an economic boycott from British products, and to control the protests they decided to do a congress- the Stamp Act Congress. Nine colonies sent representatives and it was held in October 1765. The Local Committees decided on the nonimportation agreement and everyone adapted. Women set up to homespun cloth which gained them respect and recognition. All these tactics worked for the colonists, and Parliament ended up repelling the Stamp Act in 1766. However, the struggle for the colonists wasn't near over, more acts were to come.