"Sons of Liberty"
Before the American Revolution, the thirteen British American Colonies were threatened by the French and Indians. The British vowed to protect their colonies. After a British and Colonial victory, the British empire found itself in debt. In order to alleviate this debt, Parliament, the British legislature, levied several taxes on their thirteen colonies. The American Colonists, having become acquainted with one another during the French & Indian War, united to overthrow the British government, while declaring that the British government was not just in taxing them, because Parliament did not represent them.
Having to work together, meant that the Colonies would have to improve their contact with each other. The representatives of the Colonies created, through legislation, the Committee of Correspondence. This was an official and legal agency of the Colonies. This committee ensured that the Colonies remained in contact regarding matters of the British government.
Another more exclusive group that sought to accomplish the same goals of the Committee of Correspondence were the Sons of Liberty. The Sons of Liberty, however, was a more daring group, that used violence to punish those who were loyal to the British government: Tories or Loyalists. Their acts of violence included tarring, feathering, and destroying loyalists' property. The Sons of Liberty was the group responsible for the Boston Tea Party!
Sons of Liberty Propaganda
In a quarrel between the Colonists and the British soldiers in Massachusetts, the British soldiers killed several Colonists. The Sons of Liberty used the image above as propaganda to sway public opinion against the British.
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