Flag Burning Essay Research Paper Is it

Flag Burning Essay, Research Paper

Is it more important to protect the icons of our country, or to ensure the right

to extremely offensive expressions. The issue of flag burning asks America just

that question: Should America tolerate, or condemn. Flag burning does seem to be

the ultimate act of symbolic protest used to express dissension against the

American Government. There is simply no questioning the fact that flag burning

offends people, but the controversy of flag burning tests the dominion of the

First Amendment to the Constitution. The First Amendment states very simply,

Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech or of the

press." (Harvin ) It is widely debatable whether or not the American flag

is an object that requires the refuge of legislation. History of the Flag The

American flag played no significant role in American life until the Civil War.

It was displayed only on federal government buildings, forts, and American ships

at sea. It would have been unthinkable to fly an American flag at a private home

or public school. It simply was not done. Only the outbreak of the Civil War

made the American Flag transform into an object of public adoration. The flag

suddenly started appearing everywhere from colleges, hotels, stores, to private

homes. But the flag’s growing popularity was not accompanied at first by any

sense that is should be regarded as a sacred object or vestige( Goldstein).

History of Flag Burning The Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the right to

desecrate an American flag. However, various legislatures have tried numerous

times to criminalize the act of flag burning. Despite their efforts, flag

burning is still legal, at least for the time being. Still, the legal future of

flag burning is very much in question. Although it does not deal specifically

with flag desecration, the 1931 Supreme Court case of Stromberg v. California

was the first to test the extent of the First Amendment as it applies to

displaying the flag. Stromberg was arrested, charged, and convicted for

displaying a red flag. The Supreme Court set the precedent and ruled that

because similar to flag burning, the flag is being used in an expressive manner

(Goldstein). The first epidemic of flag desecration in American history occurred

during the late Sixties and early Seventies. Americans were becoming more and

more disgusted with the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. This era is commonly known

for its radical political activism. Setting the American flag ablaze was a

common way for protesters to decry the Vietnam conflict (Mullins). Protesters

soon realized that flag burning was an extremely effective way to express many

of their anti-American views. The second Supreme Court case that dealt with

using the flag in an expressive manner occurred with the 1974 case of Spence v.

Washington. This case was very similar to the earlier case of Stromberg v.

California. The case involved a protester who was arrested and convicted for

displaying an American flag with an attached peace sign. Just the same as the

Stromberg case, the conviction was overturned and deemed unconstitutional

because the action was expressive (Goldstein). The earlier Spence and Stromberg

cases both deal with the expressive use of the American flag, but no flag

burning itself The first and most notable Supreme Court case to tackle the

controversy of flag burning itself was the case of Texas v. Johnson. In 1984,

Gregory Lee Johnson participated in a rally dubbed the ‘Republican War Chest

Tour,’ which protested U.S. foreign policy. The demonstration climaxed as

protesters chanted and Johnson doused the American flag with kerosene and set it

on fire (Harvin). This was perhaps the most famous flag ever burned in U.S.

history. Johnson was arrested and charged with violating the Texas statue 42.09

Desecration of a Venerated Object. The law states in part, "A person

commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly defaces.. . a state or

national flag." Johnson was fined $2,000 and was sentenced to one year in

state prison (Goldstein). Johnson appealed the decision all the way to the U.S.

Supreme Court. Five years later, in 1989, the Supreme Court overturned the

conviction by the narrowest of margins, five to four. The ruling stated that

"free speech does not end at the spoken or written word." (Goldstein).

After the controversial ruling in Texas v. Johnson, United States lawmakers

wasted little time in passing the Federal Flag Protection Act of 1989. The Flag

Protection Act was very similar to the earlier unconstitutional Texas statue.

The only difference was that the federal law applied specifically to the

American flag, and described a much broader range of offenses (Goldstein). The

Flag Protection Act met its first constitutional challenge very quickly. The

1990 Supreme Court case of Unit

Внимание, отключите Adblock

Вы посетили наш сайт со включенным блокировщиком рекламы!
Ссылка для скачивания станет доступной сразу после отключения Adblock!

Скачать