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The largest protests in US history have all occurred since 2016; however, early in US history mass protests were vital to social and political change. Class discontent has often been a main reason for mass movements and protests. Culpeper's Rebellion was one of the first large-scale, at least based on the population at the time, movements in Carolina Colony in 1677. This was led by John Culpeper in a protest movement and armed rebellion against the British authorities over the issue of taxes in the Navigation Act. At the time, the British had begun to create a series of duties on cotton and other exports from their American colonies, such as tobacco exports. The movement was ultimately suppressed but for a time the rebellion and protests worked in getting the British to exempt taxes, which was the main reason why the rebellion starteddemonstrating some effectiveness of mass mobilization and mix of violence. John Culpeper even successfully defended himself while he was on trialin Britain. John Culpeper was able to lead the movement and this helped This also elped him to become a prominent citizen in what is today North Carolina, where ultimately his descendants continued to even be influential in North Carolina politics long after the establishment of the United States. The Knowles Riot of 1747 was a major disturbance in Boston that occurred after Admiral Charles Knowles attempted to impress poor Bostonians into naval service, leading to protests and armed rioting (Figure 1). This represented one of the largest class-based protests and riots, as it was mostly working class and poor affected, on the issue of civil rightsin the 18th century, that is what rights do individuals have in refusing military service. While this was put down, it did lead to more cautious approaches by the British in recruiting colonists for their armed forces. The theme of taxes continued to be a strong one in North America and what ultimately sparked the Revolutionary War. The Stamp Act in 1765 proved very unpopular in the US Colonies, which raised taxes and required printed paper be produced in Britain. A series of increased protests occurred in the Colonies after this tax was imposed. Among different acts, the Townshend Acts, which led to a series of new taxes, created tensions that ultimately led to the Boston Tea Party in 1773 and subsequent American Revolutionthat was sparked by mass movements in reaction to this and other events. The main disputes centered on whether Parliament had the right to tax in the Colonies rather than local representatives. The Sons of Liberty, an initially secret organization, led by Samuel Adams, opposed to taxation without local representation, as their main rallying call and helped lead a series of movements that led to coordinated anti-tax protests and disturbances, including the Boston Tea Party. It is arguable that the events leading to the American Revolution, led by the Sons of Liberty and other related groups, could be considered the first coordinate acts of disobedience and protests across what became the United States.<ref>For more on early colonial protests and violent incidents related to civil disturbances, see: Gilje, Paul A. <i>Rioting in America</i>. Interdisciplinary Studies in History. Bloomington, Ind: Indiana Univ. Press, 1999. </ref>