The Roots of American
Democracy
Ideas about Government and the
Colonists
• Limited Governmentthe idea that
people should
English Political
Heritage
have a say in their own government.
• Representative Government- the idea that people
should have a say in their own government.
• Individual rights- the idea that government should
protect individual and property rights
• These ideas led to this...
French and Indian War
• British actions- British win and take control of
Ohio River Valley thus taking control of North
America. They tax colonies to repay massive
war debt.
• Colonists’ reaction- the war unites the
colonies against a common enemy. Some join
the war effort but many resent having to
shelter and supply British troops.
The Stamp Act
• British action- 1765 Parliament passes stamp
act, a tax on paper goods. A seal is required on
all goods to show that tax has been paid.
• Colonists’ reaction- boycott British goods
claiming that Parliament had no right to tax
them without their consent.
Boston Massacre
• British action- March 1770 British soldiers in
Boston are surrounded by an unfriendly crowd
of colonists and accidently open fire, killing
three and fatally wounding two colonists.
• Colonists’ reaction- they call the event a
massacre. The killing stir opposition to British
policies and lead to the withdrawal of British
troops from Boston.
Boston Tea Party
• British actions- the British pass the Townshend
Acts, taxing all paper, glass, lead, and tea.
They send forces to the colonies to enforce
the new taxes.
• Colonists- Insulted by the tea tax , a small
band of patriots disguised as Native
Americans board English ships in Boston
Harbor and dump 342 chests of tea
overboard.
The Intolerable Acts
• British actions- as a response to the
Boston Tea Party, the British pass a
number of punitive (punishing)
measures in the spring of 1774. Boston
Harbor is closed, and British troops are
quartered.
• Colonists’ reaction- the colonists call for
a Continental Congress in 1774. The
repeal (the doing away with) of the
Intolerable Acts would be the colonists’
Your Task
• Read The 9/11 Dilemma: Freedom vs. Security
• You will apply though analysis of the reading the ideas
of limited government, representative government,
and individual rights to the following questions:
• Can government listen to our phone conversations and
read our e-mails without warrants? Why or why not?
• Should suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay prison in
Cuba have the right to challenge their detention in court?
Why or why not?
• How much power does the president have to search for
and punish those accused of having terrorists ties?
• Are harsh interrogation techniques ever justified? And at
what point do they become torture?