A Brief History
On September 5, 1698, Czar Peter I of Russia (Peter the Great) enacted a tax on beards. This tax primarily targeted the nobility in an effort to “westernize” Russia as part of Peter’s attempts to move Russia away from medieval traditions and into the modern world. Throughout history many laws have been enacted or decreed that did not sit well with the people targeted by the law. On August 5, 2014, we ran a list of “10 Incredibly Unpopular Laws,” and here 10 more such laws are presented (in no particular order).
Digging Deeper
10. Russian Beard Tax.
As described in the introduction, Peter I was eager to modernize Russia. Though standing at a height of 6’7,” he was not called “the Great” for just this reason. An active and dynamic ruler, he traveled to foreign countries to learn the latest techniques in areas such as shipbuilding and agriculture and brought this knowledge back to Russia. Unfortunately, you cannot win them all, and “Pete” was a tad off the mark with his beard tax.
9. Tea Act.
When the British levied this tax on the American colonies in 1773, the colonists, in an event later dubbed “the Boston Tea Party,” expressed their displeasure by protesting and dumping an entire shipment of tea into Boston Harbor. In a lame attempt to create scapegoats, some of the anti-tax rebels were dressed as Native Americans. The term “Tea Party” has today become synonymous with people who are fed up with taxes of all sorts and are willing to take drastic measures to lower the tax burden on people and corporations.
8. Motorcycle Helmets.
Probably passed by people who themselves do not ride motorcycles and by insurance companies pretending to look out for the public, this law requiring the use of approved helmets by motorcyclists and their passengers has just about become universal across the United States. Some states have backed off a bit though and now only require novices or minors to wear helmets. Either way, motorcyclists frequently express strong opposition to being told what to do, as do most Americans.
7. Affirmative Action.
Designed to make up for centuries of discrimination, affirmative action laws mandate that a certain percentage of designated minorities (women, racial or ethnic minorities) be hired or admitted into programs such as universities. When suitable and qualified white job applicants (especially males) are passed over or white students are not admitted to a school in favor of one of the designated minorities, whites sometimes cry foul and accuse the law of permitting “reverse discrimination.” Obviously, how this law affects you and your family influences which side of the fence you are on. In recent years some of these laws have been relaxed as a result of this backlash.
6. Busing.
Rather than achieving racial integration and combatting the cruel fallacy of “separate but equal,” this program of busing students to more distant schools disrupted neighborhoods and angered many white parents who then fled from the big cities to the suburbs in a migration that became known as “ the white flight.” There are, of course, many people who believe busing has been of tremendous help in equalizing education in big cities, but most people are not happy with this program.
5. Immigration Laws.
It is not only the United States where controversy rages over immigration. Europeans are also upset over the changing ethnic face of their countries and often lash out against immigrants from the Middle East, Africa or Asia. For example, one-time “Sex Kitten” Brigitte Bardot of France is an anti-Muslim immigration activist, while the Germans moan about Turks and British moan about “Pakis” (from Pakistan). In the U.S., there is heated debate over immigration, both legal and illegal, from Latin American, with no consensus being found that makes both sides happy.
4. Prohibition.
Rammed through legislation by crusading former suffragettes, Prohibition greatly limited alcoholic beverages in the United States from 1920 to 1933. During this time demand for booze became so high that mobsters made fortunes bootlegging. One of the most disregarded laws in American history, this could possibly be the most unpopular of them all.
3. Separation of Church and State.
America was founded on the concept of “Freedom of Religion,” but tremendous differences of opinion exist about how to go about that ideal. Many Americans cling to the notion that the U.S. is a “Christian Country” and see nothing wrong with prayer in schools, the 10 Commandments being posted in public buildings and nativity scenes being erected in public places. The other side, however, fiercely opposes anything related to religion out in the open. No matter what kind of law is passed or court decision is made, there will be a whole lot of unhappy people.
2. Gay Marriage.
This one is a two-edged sword, with one side hating laws that permit gay marriage and the other side outraged at laws that prohibit gay marriage. For a law that only affects a small percentage of the population, it certainly generates very strong feelings.
1. Mandatory Seat Belt Use.
Since the general public just would not go along with cars that only started once the seat belts were fastened, the American states did the bidding of insurance companies and enacted laws making seat belt use mandatory. The belief of those who abhor this law is that the insurance companies had these laws passed just to have an excuse to cheat people out of claims if they had not been wearing their seat belt. Either way, Americans do not like to be told what to do, and many people resent this law whether they would wear a seat belt or not.
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: What laws would you include on the hated law list?
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For another interesting event that happened on September 5, please see the History and Headlines article: “Cassius Clay Wins Olympic Gold as Light Heavyweight in Boxing.”
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
O’Sullivan, Joanne. Book of Legal Stuff: Wacky Laws, Weird Decisions & Strange Statutes (The Stuff). Imagine! Publishing, An Imprint of Charlesbridge, 2010.
The featured image in this article, a Russian beard token from 1705, carried to indicate that the owner had paid the beard tax imposed by Peter the Great, is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 100 years or fewer.
