Flag Burning Flag Burning can be and usually is a very controversial issue. Many people are offended by the thought of destroying this country's symbol of liberty and freedom. During a political protest during the 1984 Republican Convention, Gregory Lee Johnson was arrested for burning an American flag. Years later in 1989, Johnson got the decision overturned by the United States Supreme Court. In the same year, the state of Texas passed the Flag Protection Act, which prohibited any form of desecration against the American flag. This act provoked many people to protest and burn flags anyway. Two protestors, Shawn Eichman and Mark Haggerty were charged with violating the law and arrested. Both Eichman and Haggerty appealed the decision because the law was inconsistent with the first amendment to the Constitution. The right to petition the government for a redress of grievances is protected by the first amendment of the Constitution. Burning American flags and other such actions are not treasonous and should no be treated as so, as long as these actions are done to petition the government for a redress of grievances. The dissenting opinion to the previous idea is that the government's legitimate interest in preserving the symbolic value of the flag is, however, essentially the same that may have motivated a particular act of flag burning. The flag uniquely symbolizes the ideas of liberty, equality, and tolerance -- ideas that Americans have passionately defended and debated throughout our history. The flag embodies the spirit of our national commitment to those ideals. To the world, the flag is our promise that we will continue to strive for these ideals. To us, the flag is a reminder both that the struggle for li... ... middle of paper ... ...nishing desecration of the flag dilutes the very freedom that makes this emblem so revered, and worth revering." Bibliography: Bibliography Burning the American Flag September 13. "http://www-c.pbs.org/jefferson/enlight/flag.htm." Texas v. Johnson September 13. "http://www2.law.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/foliocgi.exe/historic/query=[group+491+u!2Es!2E+397!3A]^[group+citemenu!3A]^[level+case+citation!3A]^[group+notes!3A]/doc/{@1}/hit_headings/words=4/hits_only?." United States v. Eichman September 13. "http://caselaw.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=search&linkurl=&graphurl=&court=US&case=/us/496/310.html." Welch, Michael Flag Burning: Moral Panic and the Criminalization of Protest (Social Problems and Social Issues). Goldstein, Robert Justin Burning the Flag: The Great 1989-1990 American Flag Desecration Controversy Asylum Books.
In Johnny Cash’s song, The Ragged Old Flag it says, “In her own good land here she’s been abused. She’s been burned, dishonored, denied and refused.” To me this means that people have stopped honoring all that it stands for. The flag stands for all of the battles and sacrifices the United States has had to make to get it to where it is today. People
Is the upholding of the American flag as a symbol of the United States more important than the freedom of speech provided by the First Amendment? Are there certain freedoms of expression that are not protected under the First Amendment and if so what qualifies as freedom of speech and expression and what does not? The Supreme Court case of Texas v. Johnson proves that the First Amendment and the freedom of speech are not limited to that of spoken and written word, but also extended to symbolic speech as well. Texas v. Johnson is a case in which the interpretation of the First Amendment rights is at the top of the argument. This case discusses the issue of flag burning as a desecration of national unity and that the flag of the United States should be protected under a law. Texas v. Johnson expanded the rights of symbolic speech and freedom of expression under the First Amendment and was presented as a precedence for future cases along with influencing the final decision on the revision of
Stripes and stars forever, right? Well, what exactly does that mean? The American Flag can be seen almost anywhere. From the high-school, to the ball park, and even in our homes, the American flag stands as a symbol of all that is good and true in America. When one thinks of the flag, they usually think of the blood that was shed for this country. It was shed so that we could have liberties, such as, freedom of speech and expression, which fall under the first amendment rights of the Constitution. However, when you think of a burning flag, what comes to mind? One might say it shows disrespect and hatred to a country that has given so much. In the case of Texas v. Johnson, Gregory Lee Johnson was accused of desecrating a sacred object, but, his actions were protected by the First Amendment. Although his actions may have been offensive, he did not utter fighting words. By burning the flag, Johnson did not infringe upon another's natural human rights. He was simply expressing his outrage towards the government, which is within the jurisdiction of the First Amendment.
Freedom of speech and expression is a right given to all Americans under the First Amendment of the Constitution. It is a difficult concept to embrace when individuals are faced with ideas they oppose. In this kind of situation, the protection guaranteed to American citizens becomes even more important. The First Amendment was designed not only to protect the freedom to express ideas and sentiments with which one agrees, but also the ideas and sentiments with which one disagrees. It is for precisely this reason that the government should maintain the right of individuals to express their dissatisfaction with the policies of the government through the act of flag burning and not amend the Constitution to make such an act illegal.
Can an individual be prosecuted for openly burning the American flag in a political protest? Gregory Johnson did this in a political protest outside Dallas City Hall. He was then tried and convicted of desecrating a venerated object under a Texas law (Penal Code 42.09), which states that "a person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly desecrates a state or national flag" (317). The question of whether this Texas law is in violation of the First Amendment, which "holds that Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech" (316), was brought before the United States Supreme Court in Texas v. Johnson (1989). A divided court ruled 5 to 4 that the Texas law was in violation of the First Amendment. Using the same Constitution, precedents, and legal standards, the Supreme Court justices came to two drastically different positions regarding the constitutionality of prohibiting flag burning. To see how such a division is possible, we are going to compare and contrast both the arguments and the methods of argumentation used by both the majority opinion (written by Associate Justice Brennan) and the dissenting opinion (written by Chief Justice Rehnquist), which critiques the majority opinion.
The Confederate flag was used symbolically during the Civil War. To southerner’s, the flag represented a source of southern pride as well as a way of remembering the fallen Confederates. As the Civil War proceeded, the meaning of the flag began to change. Currently, the flag is being used as a symbol for racism. Due to this change in meaning, controversy over the flag has been exponentially growing. Although many would argue the original meaning behind the flag and that it is a symbol of historical culture that should not be forgotten, the flag should be banned due to its representation of racism and the seceding of the states.
In a 1943 landmark Supreme Court case, Justice Robert H. Jackson wrote, "The freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much" (qtd. in Jacoby el al. 20). This concept can be applied in the debate on whether to amend the Constitution to ban flag burning. When one considers the Constitution and the symbolic meaning of the United States flag, he or she can see that this is one issue that does mean a great deal to the American public. The freedom to differ is of extreme importance in this case, which can be seen as one reviews the reasoning for committing such an act and what it might mean beyond the desecration of a revered national symbol.
The United States Government should deem desecration of the American Flag unconstitutional because of the freedom in which the flag represents, along with the blood, sweat, and tears that were shed by our brave soldiers and veterans. Desecration of the American Flag suggests a disdain, or a disregard for the symbolic meaning under which it represents. The American Flag has forever and a day been an image declaring freedom and democracy, and has showcased our principles and beliefs as a country.
On June 28, 2015, an activist by the name of Bree Newsome did something unspeakable; she climbed up the flag pole of the South Carolina state house and removed the wretched Confederate Battle flag that has been swaying in the air since 1961. Many saw this as a social media act for attention, but what I saw was a woman who was desperately trying to get the attention of the ones that can make a difference for a situation that truly needed attention. Although many consider the Confederate Battle Flag to be a symbol of southern pride and heritage, it represents the entirety of southern history, much of which involved slavery and should be taken down; not only from the state capital, but anywhere this symbol of racism stands. The history of this flag has been tainted by slavery and groups like the Ku Klux Klan, which have misrepresented what it means and have created acts of not only violence, but racism and hatred as well. Also, the main purpose of the creating
(Costa-Roberts) Throughout the debate on banning the Confederate flag, the people still defending the Confederate flag are considered racist. The majority of the people flying the Confederate flag is not flying it for any form of racism. They are flying it because they are proud of their state's heritage. (Simon) Why would people be so protective of a flag? The flag has been in their life for so long. Imagine growing up watching The Dukes of Hazard with your family, or walking out the door every day on the way to school and seeing it flying on your front porch. “You grow fond of the image, it’s an attachment based on an affiliation with things they love. It’s easy to associate an image with feelings of happiness and therefore form a protective affinity for objects and symbols.”
Flag defilement is seen in many forms, such as- spitting on, tearing apart, or burning. During the 1960’s, a time of despair and revolution, flag vandalism proliferated. In effort to alter their lifestyle, Americans stampeded the streets ruining the symbol of freedom in the name of politics and racism. The violent array of insubordination created an immediate reaction. Each protest became more violent and ill mannered. Each time someone demolishes a flag, the act is not freedom of speech- it is an expression of an anti-American lifestyle.
In the article “The Emotional Attachment of National Symbols” wrote by Cynthia Miller-Idriss. In her article she believes that one of the nation’s symbols, that deserves respect is the flag. Her belief of how the flag should be respected is different from the common view of respect. She states how national symbols, such as the flag, are things that are meant to be debated in their meaning. She believes that symbols should are meant to make us transform them, wether you agree with Kaepernick’s actions. She states that debate and change are key things in a democracy such as ours.
...ag and mine is that I will always look up to our flag and never disrespect a single thing about it. There is a lot of respect for the flag in all kinds of ways. Whether it’s at a funeral, on the battlefield, in museums, on postage stamps, on uniforms, or even on vehicles. No one disrespects the United States Flag or ever has. I think this showing of respect just shows how far we have come as a country. The United States Flag is a shows that we are in fact “one nation, under god”. We have many things to look forward to just because of the protection of our flag. I will always look up to our flag with pride and joy at how far we have come today because of it. The flag brings man people peace at heart, joy of the next day, and pride in our country. One thing I can say is that all americans have one thing in common and that is the respect for our nations flag.
“It isn't against the law to burn a cross or any other religious symbol—yet it would be against the law to burn a flag, if these flag amendment folks have their way” (Levendosky). If you are allowed to buy a cross and go home and burn it why should you be held to a law that is the same as that. Making a flag more than what it should be is what is making the argument such a big deal. “Chief Justice William Rehnquist, in a dissent fifteen years ago, when the Court refused to hold flag burning a crime, wrote that "the true nature of the state's interest in this case is not only one of preserving 'the physical integrity of the flag' but also one of preserving the flag as an important symbol of nationhood and unity. . . . It is the character not the cloth of the flag that the states seek to protect" (Garbus). This quote represents taking this case too far. This case should be held between a couple of people in the government, but they should have a vote that declares what's what. And if people don’t like what happens then you can keep it to
The strong points of this essay are that the essay had a lot of evidence to support his claim. To begin in his second paragraph he discusses how the constitution says nothing about desecrating the flag. He talks about how burning a flag is not a speech but it rather an act that takes place. The author tells us that flag burning is not speech and only words are considered speech so for there the constitution doesn’t allow the freedom to burn a flag. This was a good point he made me think twice about what is meant by the first amendment in our constitution.