Flag Burning Research Paper

Flag burning, as a form of peaceful protest, is not a recent matter; the first time being when Congress tried to stop this in 1907. The government eventually banned flag burning in 48 states, but this went away a few decades later in 1989 thanks to the Texas v. Johnson Supreme Court (SCOTUS) case. One of the reasons people burn the flag is to protest something. They often do it to “show that America has strayed from its original path” (Flagcases.net). Taking away this right goes against the Constitution’s First Amendment: the freedom of speech. Burning the flag may not be a direct action of speech, but it is an act of symbolic speech. Even though some people find flag burning to be offensive, it is still protected under the First Amendment, …show more content…
protects freedom of speech, the press, assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances,” (Constitution) therefore, taking away this right would mean taking away one of the main things American citizens use to petition the government. Texas v. Johnson is a landmark SCOTUS case that allows for Americans to burn the national flag as a form of protest. This action was found to be protected under the First Amendment’s freedom of expression and freedom of speech. In the case of Texas v. Johnson, “Gregory Lee Johnson burned a flag outside the convention center during the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas.” (Bomboy) The reason for this protest was to show how Johnson was unhappy with the presidential candidates Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale. As a result of this, Johnson went to prison for a year and had to pay a $2,000 fee. The central question in this case was whether or not this action had been justified by the First Amendment’s right to free speech. Therefore, Congress debated, and debated, and finally came to a 5-4 decision in favor of Johnson. This landmark case “emphasized that freedom of speech safeguards actions that society may find offensive, and society’s outrage alone is not a valid reason to suppress free speech” (US State

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