While we prepare for Tax Free Weekend, let’s take a moment to relish in history. During the 1750s and 1760s the slogan “No taxation without representation” became mighty popular. It summarized the grievance of the Thirteen Colonies and was one of the major reasons for the American Revolution. Many in the colonies believed that because they were not directly represented by the distant British Parliament, any laws it passed taxing the colonists were illegal under the Bill of Rights of 1689, and were a denial of their rights as Englishmen. The Sugar Act and the Stamp Act are two examples of laws meant to tax the colonist for the crown to pay for military expenses and as a source of income. The Sugar Act was in response to a previous tax on molasses that was never collect because the colonist managed to evade it. As for the Stamp Act those that paid the tax received an official stamp on their documents, making them legal documents. So if you didn’t pay the tax your documents were considered illegal. As for the colonist, the British Parliament controlled colonial trade and taxed imports and exports since 1660. By the 1760’s the Americans were being deprived of their rights. The English Bill of Rights of 1689 had forbidden the imposition of taxes without the consent of Parliament. Since the colonists had no representation in Parliament the taxes violated the guaranteed Rights of Englishmen. That is what the motto of 1750-1760 means, “No taxation without representation.”