“To these grievous measures, Americans cannot submit.”
That bold declaration helped spark coordinated resistance across the colonies in 1774. [Oct 14th] marked the 250th anniversary of the Declaration and Resolves of the First Continental Congress, passed unanimously on October 14, 1774.
Almost forgotten today, the Declaration and Resolves were precursors to both the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. They reaffirmed that acts beyond the Constitution are void and must be resisted and nullified.
The first line established that internal taxation, duties, and “unconstitutional powers” stemmed from the broader Declaratory Act of 1766, where Britain claimed power over the colonies “in all cases whatsoever.”
“Whereas, since the close of the last war, the British Parliament, claiming a power of right to bind the people of America, by statute, in all cases whatsoever, hath, in some Acts, expressly imposed taxes on them, and in others, under various pretences, but in fact for the purpose of raising a revenue, hath imposed rates and duties payable in these Colonies, established a Board of Commissioners, with unconstitutional powers, and extended the jurisdiction of Courts of Admiralty, not only for collecting the said duties, but for the trial of causes merely arising within the body of a County” […]
— Read More: granitegrok.com
