On this day 250 years ago, the Town of Newton, Massachusetts held a town meeting that adopted unanimously Resolves drafted by a Committee of Five led by Charles Pelham, Esq. The Newton Resolves included:
2. That in justice to ourselves, our fellow-colonists and our posterity, we cannot, nor will, voluntarily or lamely, submit to . . . any tax laid on us for the express purpose of raising a revenue, without our consent, given by ourselves or our Representatives.
3. That as part of the Colonies laboring under oppression, we are determined to join the rest, in all and every lawful and just method of obtaining redress, or preventing the oppression, even to the risk of our lives and fortunes.
As readers of this blog know, the revolt against the British Parliament’s tax on tea effected by the Boston Tea Party and actions by communities like the Town of Newton all across Massachusetts and the other American colonies, was not a protest against taxation. These communities in America had long governed themselves through town meetings and the election of representatives to the assemblies in each colony, and the Patriots refused to allow Parliament to override their self-governance.
Because I know the real history, it is especially abhorrent to me that three years ago today, symbols of the Revolution, including the “Tea Party” name and the Gadsden (“Don’t Tread on Me”) Flag, were used by a mob intent on overthrowing our democratically elected government. Real American Patriots should reclaim the symbolism of the Revolution and reject its misappropriation by a movement seeking to restrict the American electorate and override the self-governance of the American people, missing the very point of the Tea Party and our American Revolution.
On This Day In The Revolution 
One response to “On this day 250 years ago in the Revolution — January 6, 1774”
The mob claimed that the election was robbed and that the proper government needed to be “restored” on January 6, 2021. Our elected vice president and a majority of elected officials did not agree. The government was functioning properly at the time.
If votes are doubted, there’s a legal process by which they can be challenged. Registered voters sanctioned that process. Mob rule betrays it. By definition, the crime of betraying a nation by acts considered dangerous to its security is called treason.
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