Briefings & Statements

# Presidential Message on the 255th Anniversary of the Boston Massacre, 2025

The White House
March 5, 2025

Today our Nation commemorates the 255th anniversary of the Boston Massacre—the singular event that ignited the movement for American independence. To this day, it stands as a defining crucible of the American Revolution.

The years leading up to this tragic moment were marked by escalating tensions between the Patriots and the British Parliament. The imposition of unjust global trade regimes and burdensome taxes, including the Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts, inspired the American Colonies in their bid for Freedom.

On the wintry evening of March 5, 1770, a fight broke out in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, between the British Redcoats and unarmed American Colonists. The violence escalated as the soldiers fired their muskets into the crowd at the Custom House. When the smoke cleared on King Street, three civilians were dead, two fatally wounded, and six more injured.

This massacre sparked outrage among the Colonists. It has echoed throughout history as a seminal moment in the long and fraught battle for American liberty. Roughly five years later, the first shots were fired in Revolutionary War—and the American Colonists ultimately secured their independence, paving the way for the birth of the greatest Nation in the history of the world. On this, the 255th Anniversary of the Boston Massacre, we pay tribute to and honor those who have paid the ultimate price in defense of America’s cherished values.