A government raises taxes due to a long and costly war, which it won. The citizens who benefitted from the war are unhappy about the new taxes and stage several protests, many of which are violent and vandalize property. The government then sends troops to guard ships in ports since imported goods have become a very contentious topic. Masked men sneak onto a ship and destroy $750,000 worth of goods in protest. In this case, which is a description of the Boston Tea Party, the masked men are not considered terrorists; they are several of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Which BEST explains why their violence and destruction were considered heroic? The British did not have a word for terrorism in this era.

It was not viewed as heroic at the time, but history changes perspectives.

It served the larger cause of American independence, which is a positive.

Since the United States did not exist, there could be no terrorism against it.