Remember the Tea Party!, for real.

The Boston Tea Party was one of the most important events leading up to the American Revolution. It is, should be, remembered and honored as a patriotic act of resistance to unfettered governmental interference into the lives of citizens.

The Boston Tea Party was sparked by the continuance of a tax on tea, imposed without approval by American colonists, plus the exemption of the British East India Tea Company (EITC) from this commission. This allowance for the EITC meant its tea would be less expensive than tea from American companies and could lead to the EITC gaining a monopoly over the its sale. Both conditions, taxation without representation while also hurting American businesses, were important drivers in starting the Boston Tea Party.

As adult citizens, we must honor the Boston Tea Party and we must also understand exactly what it was. In short, ships bearing tea owned by the British East India Trading Company (a joint-stock private business) moored at Boston Harbor. Bostonians including Samuel Adams tried to have the two ships bearing the tea sent back to London. The British military and the Royal Governor of Massachusetts refused and demanded the tea be unloaded for sale. Bostonians, especially members of the Sons of Liberty, watched the ships to ensure the tea was not unloaded. The final straw came after the ships’ captain’s plea to depart with the tea was turned down by the Governor. At a town hall meeting to discuss these events, Samuel Adams concluded “This meeting can do nothing further to save the country.” It is debatable whether this was a prearranged signal, however, the Boston Tea Party occurred later that night.

Loosely disguised as Mohawk Native Americans, members of the Sons of Liberty boarded a tea-laden ships that night and threw the tea into the harbor. They were careful not to destroy any other property, however they clearly destroyed private property. The Governor called this treasonous, and various Founders, such as George Washington, denounced such lawlessness against private property.

The Boston Tea Party itself did not initiate the American Revolutionary War, but the foolish ‘Federal’ (British) response to it did. The British closed Boston Harbor, enacted Coercive Acts, and increased the presence of British soldiers patrolling Boston all of which catalyzed broad resistance to British rule. It would be difficult to imagine this radicalization in general was not a primary goal of the Sons of Liberty.