What is the difference between freedom fighters and terrorists? Essentially they are both fighting for a cause. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines terrorism as the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion and a freedom fighter is a person who takes part in a resistance movement against an oppressive political or social establishment. Which expression best describes the Sons of Liberty? Do they fit in both categories? If you look them up anywhere in a history book, magazine, article, or even the Internet they are usually labeled as heroes or Patriots. Here is a group of middle and lower class shopkeepers, artisans, workers and tradesman who stood together and prepared to stand for a cause.
The Sons of Liberty were a secretive group of men in the thirteen colonies who led a resistance against the British government before the American Revolution. Their main intention was to protect the rights of colonists and to fight taxation by the British government. No one knows exactly when the group was formed or when they were first seen. There is no factual information about where the group started since they left no paper trail, some
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The Sons of Liberty were continuous active until the end of the American Revolution and officially ended in 1783 were the group disbanded. So the Sons of Liberty comes down to the old saying “one men’s terrorist is another man’s patriot”. These brave men gave American colonist a voice and the courage to stand up for what they believe is fair and the fight for independency. Are they terrorists? I bet the British think they do. They didn’t want whatever Parliament was passing; let it be a rule or a new tax. They revolted against anything they didn’t like or hear. Are they Patriots? It’s safe to say Americans think they
These people who illustrated radicalism personified the true enlighten of how the American Revolution indeed was with going against British favorites and hitting hard on the British
The Sons of Liberty answered the call. In an act of defiance, “a few dozen of the Sons of Liberty, opposing new British laws in the colonies, systematically dumped three shiploads of tea into Boston harbor. They acted to prevent the royal authorities from collecting taxes on that import” (Bell). This left Parliament infuriated. They did what they only knew how to do and put a tighter squeeze on the colonists.
As far the Patriots are concerned, they were most citizens who wanted the revolution and freedom from the British. The Patriots were sick and tired of the British rule and their unfair treatment towards them. The Patriots
They were the people who actively participated and sacrificed their lives. Therefore the side they chose to fight on was heavily influenced by their “local interests, grudges, and unfulfilled yearnings [Page 87].”In summary, poor farmers, wanted political rights and land. For slaves they yearned for freedom. Women wanted to have the same rights as men. Native Americans wanted the colonists to stop encroaching on their land. Many of these desires coincided while other clashed. Therein lay the chaos that drove the American Revolution. While many of the people did not succeed the ideas they fought for became deeply embedded into
After the Revolution, the country was left in an economic crisis and struggling for a cohesive path moving forward. The remaining financial obligations left some Founding Fathers searching for ways to create a stronger more centralized government to address concerns on a national level. The thought was that with a more centralized, concentrated governing body, the more efficient tensions and fiscal responsibilities could be addressed. With a central government manning these responsibilities, instead of the individual colonies, they would obtain consistent governing policies. However, as with many things in life, it was a difficult path with a lot of conflicting ideas and opponents. Much of the population was divided choosing either the
The Americans were well organized to resist new financial demands placed upon them by the British Parliament. In 1765 the secret organizations known as the Sons and the Daughters of Liberty were created to boycott British products. By early 1773 the assemblies of Massachusetts and Virginia had created the Committees of Correspondence, which were designed to communicate within the colonies any threats to American liberties. In April 1773 the British Parliament passed the Tea Act, which allowed the East Indian Company to undersell colonial tea merchants in the American market. The stage was set for a confrontation. (Burns, B31)
Although their influence on the social sphere was by far the largest, the masons also had an impact on military conditions during the American Revolution and War for Independence. The masons were essential in providing military camaraderie during the wars leading up to the American Revolution and during the Revolutionary war through their military lodges and inclusive stance. Military Lodges provided support and boosted morale for soldiers during the War for Independence among other wars. Military lodges were much like normal lodges except that they did not have permanent locations. These lodges were portable so that they could travel with the military and so that freemasons fighting in the war has the ability to continue their membership in the fraternity even when they were at war. There were at least 11 military lodges during the War for Independence, with the most famous being the American Union Lodge Number One (Fay 245). Having a lodge in the field created a support system for masonic soldiers because it gave them a piece of home as well as created friendships. This military morale was a masonic contribution to the Revolutionary Era because it helped empower American soldiers and created military community.
The Sons of Liberty was a group of men fighting for their independence. They were fighting before the Continental Congress or the beginning of the Revolutionary War. They were called out as being disobedient. They were believed to be political radicals at the time doing what they felt was right for their town and their colonies. The Sons of Liberty were everyday men that expanded from New England all the way down to the thirteen colonies.
The men were really the Sons of Liberty led by Samuel Adams. The Sons of Liberty was a group who was formed to protest British taxation and to protect the rights of colonists. They started walking to the harbor that night in their disguises and more men joined them until the group had about 150 people. They walked to the ship and when one guard tried to stop them. A man in the group raised his gun and said, “The path is wide enough for all of us; we have nothing to do with you and intend you no harm-if you keep your own way peacefully we shall keep ours.” He was smart when he stepped aside. The men ordered the captain and the crew below and used their axes to open up the crates and throw the tea leaves into the harbor. Anyone who tried to steal the tea leaves instead of throwing it overboard was either beaten or tossed overboard. After the main event, some of the Sons of Liberty got in canoes and started batting down the leaves. They vowed to not eat fish from Boston harbor because they fish had been swimming through the tea.
In the 1760s, Boston was full of disorder. With each new British law came protest from American colonists. The people of Boston believed that Britain did not have the right to tax them because they did not elect their representatives in Parliament. Only the Massachusetts Assembly, whose members were elected every year, had the right to tax its citizens. The Stamp Act of 1765 and the Townshend Acts of 1767 led to boycotts and unrest, steered by a group known as the Sons of Liberty. As a result, the British government sent troops to Boston to keep order. Instead of staying in a fort on an island in the Boston harbor, the British troops stayed on the commons and were living in buildings in the middle of town. The British troops’ presence in Boston was not welcome and Bostonians viewed them as a threat. Because they did not like the English army in their city, fights between the American colonists and the British troops were common.
In the 1770’s the British army was well known for its monetary wealth and professional well trained militia. American colonists were slowly getting more and more fed up with the inequality and taxation under British rule so they took a stand. Americans known as Rebels or Patriots fought in the Revolutionary War to gain independence from Britain. Some colonists also known as loyalists, thought that the Patriots had no chance against the professional militia so they stayed loyal to the crown. Although improbable at the start of the American Revolution, the colonists were able to defeat the British army and formally gain independence because they had great leadership from George Washington, similar goals that created high morale, and aided from
...he Revolutionary War should be deemed just as important as the war itself. The repeal of the Stamp Act of 1765 with the mob action towards Andrew Oliver and Thomas Hutchinson, the Boston Massacre propaganda of 1770, and the resistance movement of the Boston Tea Party were all events that inspired radical views and revolutionary change. These events were backed and played through by the use of mobs especially like men of the Sons of Liberty. In the end, these men weren’t just “a rabble of boys”, “disorderly sailors”, or “miscreants” nor just a motley crew who was purely destructive and mindless. Rather they were men who acted for the betterment and survival of a people; patriots. These mobs help drive the resistance of the British from idea to movement toward greater change. In other words, these men steered America toward resistance and finally toward revolution.
The Founding Fathers were a revolutionary group, diverse in personalities and ideologies but shared the common goal of American liberty. They understood that the citizens should have a say in their government, and the government only obtains its power from the citizen’s consent. In order to avoid endless debates on issues that needed to be solved immediately, the revolutionary leaders compromised their beliefs. Joseph J. Ellis writes of the compromises that changed the constitutional debate into the creation of political parties in, The Founding Brothers. The 3 main chapters that show cased The Founding Brothers’ compromises are The Dinner, The Silence, and The Collaborators.
Throughout history freedom has had many different meanings and definitions; based on race, gender, and ethnicity. According to the dictionary freedom means the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint (“freedom” def. 1). Freedom may seem like something given to everyone however it was something workers had to fight for. Not everyone believed that workers’ rights needed to be changed, which led to a long battle between workers, employers and the government. To the working class people freedom meant making higher wages, having regulated hours, workable conditions and the right to free speech.
Terrorism is any act that is intended to cause terror. Terrorism usually has a political motive behind the act. A wide range of political organizations have used terrorism to control their citizens. It has been practiced by nationalist groups, religious groups, revolutionaries, and ruling governments in the past. A terrorist is a person who uses terrorism in the pursuit of political goals. However, a freedom fighter is a person who uses violence to achieve a political goal, especially in order to overthrow their government. A freedom fighter would be someone like Nelson Mandela fought for the rights of black African people in South Africa. In the movie “V for Vendetta” there is a character named V. The main character V is a fascinating and