The Tea Party Then and Now
The Tea Party Then and Now
Gerald Beaudet – PLS 220 Capstone
In Boston the Tea Party of 1773 forever changed the face of America. In Chicago on February 23rd of 2009 Rick Santelli proclaimed it was time for a “Chicago style Tea Party in July.” (Santelli, 2009)Those words spoken by Rick Santelli started a grass roots movement that has changed politics and has influenced elections ever since.
During the founding of our nation one important event stands true as one of the most important events in U.S. history. The Boston Tea Party was a culmination of atrocities forced upon the Colonists of North America by the British Government in the form of unfair taxes, thus the phrase “No Taxation without representation”. The Boston Tea Party was an uprising by the people to let Great Britain know that the people of America were not going to stand for the taxation that was far over and above what was necessary. Their cry was “no taxation without representation.” In fact what Great Britain was doing was taxing the teas of all companies but one, the East India Tea Company. So in essence Great Britain was forcing the colonists to purchase tea from The East India Tea Company because it was far less expensive than all the other tea brands. A group of citizens led by John Hancock and Samuel Adams formed a group known as the Sons of Liberty. They wanted to protest in a non violent way and decided that they could have a group dress as Indians board the boats that had the East India Tea on board and destroy it by throwing it into the Boston Harbor. The following year the British government retaliated by passing a law known as the Intolerable Acts which closed Boston Harbor indefinitely. The Tea Party was in essence the first step on the road to independence from repressive Great Britain and it was an example of the lengths the colonists were willing to go to for freedom. (White, 2009)
Little did he know at the time that his words would start a minor revolution with aims to
Gerald Beaudet – PLS 220 Capstone
In Boston the Tea Party of 1773 forever changed the face of America. In Chicago on February 23rd of 2009 Rick Santelli proclaimed it was time for a “Chicago style Tea Party in July.” (Santelli, 2009)Those words spoken by Rick Santelli started a grass roots movement that has changed politics and has influenced elections ever since.
During the founding of our nation one important event stands true as one of the most important events in U.S. history. The Boston Tea Party was a culmination of atrocities forced upon the Colonists of North America by the British Government in the form of unfair taxes, thus the phrase “No Taxation without representation”. The Boston Tea Party was an uprising by the people to let Great Britain know that the people of America were not going to stand for the taxation that was far over and above what was necessary. Their cry was “no taxation without representation.” In fact what Great Britain was doing was taxing the teas of all companies but one, the East India Tea Company. So in essence Great Britain was forcing the colonists to purchase tea from The East India Tea Company because it was far less expensive than all the other tea brands. A group of citizens led by John Hancock and Samuel Adams formed a group known as the Sons of Liberty. They wanted to protest in a non violent way and decided that they could have a group dress as Indians board the boats that had the East India Tea on board and destroy it by throwing it into the Boston Harbor. The following year the British government retaliated by passing a law known as the Intolerable Acts which closed Boston Harbor indefinitely. The Tea Party was in essence the first step on the road to independence from repressive Great Britain and it was an example of the lengths the colonists were willing to go to for freedom. (White, 2009)
Little did he know at the time that his words would start a minor revolution with aims to
References: Bedard, P. (2010, January 25). Rick Santelli Gets Credit for Tea Party Movement. U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved from http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2010/01/25/rick-santelli-gets-credit-for-tea-party-movement McKinley, G. (2011, July 24). The Tea Party, Fools By Any Other Name. Retrieved July 24, 2011, from Topnewsreports.com website: http://www.topnewsreports.com/1234/july11/report020.html Santelli, R. (2009, February 23). CNBC’s Rick Santelli’s Chicago Tea Party [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp-Jw-5Kx8k&feature=related Welch, S., Gruhl, J., Comer, J., & Rigdon, S. M. (2010). Understanding American Government 12e. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage LEarning. White, D. (2009). The Boston Tea Party. Retrieved July 24, 2011, from Social studies for kids website: http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/bostonteaparty.htm