The colonists protested the Tea Act despite its lowering the price of tea because the act reaffirmed Parliament's right to tax the colonies without their consent, violating the principle of "no taxation without representation." Additionally, the act gave the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales, undercutting colonial merchants and smugglers, which threatened their businesses and economic interests. The colonists saw the Tea Act not just as a tax issue, but as an attempt by Britain to assert control over colonial commerce and enforce political authority, leading to widespread protests like the Boston Tea Party. Thus, their opposition was rooted in both political and economic grievances rather than just the price of tea.