Which group resisted the Townshend Acts by boycotting taxed items?

• A. George Washington and the Loyalists
• B. Benjamin Franklin and the Quakers
• C. John Adams and the Loyalists
• D. Sam Adams and his fellow patriots

Answer: (D)

Economic resistance through nonimportation was a common tactic against the Townshend Acts. Sam Adams helped organize and rally fellow patriots to boycott taxed goods, such as tea and other imported items, to pressure Britain by hitting the colonial economy and underscoring opposition to taxation without representation. This kind of coordinated boycott required collective action from those who believed in independence and opposed British authority, which is why Sam Adams and his fellow patriots are the group described. The other options describe figures or factions that did not lead this specific anti-tax boycott—Loyalists supported Britain, while Franklin, the Quakers, and Washington did not spearhead this particular resistance in the same organized way.