Final answer:
Lawyers were targeted during revolts like Shays' Rebellion because they represented the oppressive legal and financial systems that were harming farmers and common citizens. Their association with Loyalist interests and enforcement of harmful laws made them symbols of British control and elite dominance, leading to their being targeted by revolutionaries and dissidents.
Step-by-step explanation:
Lawyers were targeted during rebellions and revolts for a variety of reasons, which are rooted in the political and social circumstances of the time. During the Shays' Rebellion, for instance, lawyers were seen as part of the establishment that was oppressing farmers by prosecuting their debts and charging high fees, which exacerbated the farmers' financial plights. Taxes and court fees were too high, and with farm goods not accepted as payment, many who were unable to pay their debts faced the potential loss of property and imprisonment.
This antagonism toward lawyers was also reflected in the wider context of the American Revolutionary War. Many lawyers at that time were associated with the Loyalists and the Crown, acting as royal officials or having ties to British rule. For the revolutionaries, these lawyers symbolized the oppressive British legal system that favored the elite and facilitated the control over common citizens, such as through the enforcement of laws that harmed the colonists' financial and social standing.
Moreover, the implementation of confiscation acts and loyalty oaths further painted lawyers as enforcers of policies that stripped rebels and dissenters of their property and rights, thus making them direct targets for the ire of the insurgents. Additionally, lawyers who acted in the interests of the state government were seen as obstacles to the social and political changes sought by various groups during periods of unrest.