Question

British colonists in North America objected to the Stamp Act primarily because it...

a. threatened the free press
b. disrupted trade with the West Indies
c. closed the colonial courts
d. enriched corrupt officials
e. taxed them without their consent

Answer 1

The British colonists objected to the Stamp Act because it represented taxation without representation, as they had no vote in the British Parliament which imposed the tax.

Step-by-step explanation:

British colonists in North America objected to the Stamp Act primarily because it taxed them without their consent. The Act imposed a direct tax on various types of printed materials, such as newspapers, legal documents, and playing cards. The colonial objection was rooted in the principle of "no taxation without representation," as they had no elected representatives in the British Parliament to consent to the taxes imposed on them. The Stamp Act was seen as an arbitrary tax meant solely to generate revenue, particularly after the debts from the French and Indian War had been repaid, highlighting the lack of equal treatment of colonists compared to British subjects across the Atlantic.