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The Rights of the Colonists

The ‘Rights of the Colonists’ was a document written in the year 1772 by Samuel Adam (Adams, 417). During this time the United States was a colony of Britain and Adams was among the radical leaders who organize successful protests in the fight for their rights. Due to oppression, the colonists had no option rather than fight for the recognition of their rights. It is around this time that the United States was fighting for their independence and it is around this time that they were preparing for independence. It was only four years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The ‘Rights of the Colonists’ was written during the series of meetings conducted in Massachusetts after the governor dissolved the colony’s assembly. A committee of correspondence was, therefore, necessary to be appointed, and thus three hundred townspeople met and did the voting. Samuel Adams was given the mandate of preparing the first draft as his colleagues had seen the potential in him.

The rights of the colonists defined the rights of the colonist in distinct groups, and these include the natural rights of the colonists as men, as Christians and as subjects of the British crown (Schwartz. The natural rights included the inherent rights of a person that includes the right to life, liberty and right to own and defend property. Every subject in England is entitled to the natural rights to worship God of his conscience, dictating the rights of Christians in worshiping. The rights of the colonists as subject postulated that the subjects were to be provided with the absolute rights similar to the Englishmen and all the freemen, in and out of the society that includes personal liberty, security, and private property. The author was motivated to possessing the same rights as the Englishmen, as he termed the rights to be inseparable to the subjects born in Great Britain as they recognize that as their home.

The document, ‘Rights of the Colonists’ is vital in that it reminds us about the history of the U.S before attaining its independence, reminding us that our forefathers as well fought for the independence that we enjoy, they were as well discriminated and treated as subjects. The ‘Rights of the Colonists’ was significant as it was aimed at bringing equality between the locals and the colonizers. The Boston town meetings were a series of preparing the future of the United States, and it is from these meetings that the ‘Rights of the Colonists’ were drafted. All men are equal, and there should be no discrimination in applying the law (U.S Constitution), Adams was well conversant with this, and therefore he drafted the document calling for the realization as well as the granting of equal rights as those of the Englishmen.

The colonists were deprived the right to property as the parliament, and the King of Britain believed that they were entitled to levy taxes to the colonies to fund its activities such as the French and Indian war and this led to the imposition of taxes on tea (Ward). The colonists were not happy about the new taxes and upset by the fact that the British government had decided to tax the colonies without their consent. The colonists, therefore, had to take action, not again pleading with the government as it had already violated their rights. The ‘Rights of the Colonists’ therefore was developed to safeguard and protect the basic and inherent rights, prohibiting the parliament and the King from further exploitation without the colonists’ consent. Rights are universal and inherent, and therefore they should not be restricted by any individual, government or state. Everyone has the right to worship and get entitled to the same treatment and rights as those born and bred in that country. There should be no discrimination in the application of the rights implying that every person should be treated equally.

Work Cited

Adams, Samuel. “The Rights of the Colonists.” Work 7 (1906): 417-428.

Bill of Rights Institute. ‘The Rights of the Colonists’. Retrieved form: https://billofrightsinstitute.org/founding-documents/primary-source-documents/the-rights-of-the-colonists/Schwartz, Bernard. The great rights of mankind: A history of the American Bill of Rights. Rowman & Littlefield, 1992.

Ward, Harry M. The War for Independence and the Transformation of American Society: War and Society in the United States, 1775-83. Routledge, 2014.