American Flag Desecration Research Paper

What does the American Flag mean to me? It means freedom,respect,equal right, faith and hope. Soldiers help protect this country, they fight for us, they give up everything for us. People don’t know how important the flag is. The flag means our country’s freedom. When I look up at the flag, I see people, not just any people, the great Americans that have fought for this country.

The American flag consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, with seven red stripes alternating among six white. In the upper left corner there is a rectangular blue space that contains fifty white stars. The thirteen stripes symbolize the thirteen original colonies of the United states of America and the stars represent the fifty states of the Union. White is said to symbolize purity and innocence. Red symbolizes strength and courage, and blue symbolizes vigilance, perseverance and justice. The flag in simple words is a piece of cloth that has meaning. The flag stands for everything in our country’s past.

In 1969, the Supreme Court of the United States (U.S. Supreme Court) put forth rules allowing the burning of the flag to be protected under the First Amendment. The U. S. Supreme Court first ruled on flag discretion in 1907 in the Halter v. Nebraska case. Prior to this ruling flag discretion statues strictly prohibited the burning of the American flag , as well as, disrespecting the flag in any way shape or form. In 1968, Congress reacted to the burning of the American flag in New York during a protest against the Vietnam War by passing the Federal Flag Desecration Law. In a few court cases it has been declared that burning the American flag is only illegal if the flag has been stolen. When a flag is worn/torn the proper way of disposing of the flag is to burn it; however, when disposing of a flag by burning it there are steps that should be followed in order to do so honorably. The flag should be folded in its customary manner and then placed on a fire that is fairly large with sufficient intensity to ensure complete burning of the flag. After placing the flag on the fire all individuals should come to attention, salute the flag while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and observing a brief moment of silence. Once the flag has been completely consumed the fire should be safely extinguished and the ashes should be buried. Congress has made seven attempts to overrule the Supreme Court decision regarding the burning of the American flag by passing a constitutional amendment that had an exception to the First Amendment and allowed the government to ban flag desecration. (Thelawdictionary.org,

Is burning the American flag freedoms for speech? The Supreme Court says that burning the American flag is a form of expression that's protected by the first amendment. Flag burning is something that needed to be protected. Congress passed the Flag Protection Act in 1989 that stated anyone who knowingly mutilates, defaces, physically defiles, burns, maintains on the floor or ground, or templates upon a United States flag can be prosecuted. The Boston Tea Party carried a message and no one expected that act of civil disobedience was protected by free speech. Burning the American Flag is wrong no matter who burns it, it is wrong to do so. You wouldn't want no one burning your flag so I believe it's not okay to burn any flag at all and it shouldn't

The United States is known for being ‘land of the free’, a nation with a Declaration of Independence, as well, as a Constitution protecting the rights of it’s citizens. Wars have been fought and many people have died so we could have the rights that present today. The freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and most importantly the right to petition our government; all of which fall under the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights. Our nation’s flag is an everlasting symbol of freedom and hope

The flag is a symbol of pride and patriotism. “The flag is not racist. It is a symbol of patriots who were willing to die to protect this country and make sure it remained as the founders intended,” (Is the confederate flag racist?, 1). This exemplifies that the flag is not a racist symbol, it is a symbol of patriotism. The Confederate flag is not a racist

The issue of flag desecration has been and continues to be a highly controversial issue; on the one side there are those who believe that the flag is a unique symbol for our nation which should be preserved at all costs, while on the other are those who believe that flag burning is a form of free speech and that any legislation designed to prevent this form of expression is contrary to the ideals of the First Amendment to our Constitution. Shawn Eichman, as well as the majority of the United States Supreme Court, is in the latter of these groups. Many citizens believe that the freedom of speech granted to them in the First Amendment means that they can express themselves in any manner they wish as long as their right of

“ The American flag remains a living piece of history and a source of pride and unity for all Americans. The Stars and Stripes embodies the very qualities that make our nation great: liberty, justice, freedom, love of country and national purpose.” and once again just stated here this shows how important the flag means to every single American citizen in every form of our first

The American flag not only stands for pride, freedom, and strength but the colors on the flag have a meaning behind them that all Americans should understand. In a description of the flag on a website dedicated solely to the Flag of the United States of America is states "The colors of the pales (the vertical stripes) are those used in the flag of the United States of America; White signifies purity and innocence, Red, hardiness & valour, and Blue, the color of the Chief (the broad band above the stripes) signifies vigilance, perseverance & justice" (US Flag 2005). The flag was not just thrown together to represent the country but also have a true meaning behind them. The stars and stripes on the flag have both an exact meaning but also have the meaning of

It someone wants American pride, there is nothing more “American” than the American flag. The United states of America is what everyone in this country should be proud

The union’s victory over the conference and the return to a united country engendered patriotic fervor that was embodied in this symbol. When large numbers of immigrants entered the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the flag was appropriated as a symbol of nationalism and patriotism groups that felt that the cultures and custom’s of the new citizen’s threatened national unity and security. (“flag”) I thank that the confederate flag should not be inside government buildings because it could be races to some people.

Battle flags were used during the Civil War to build morale within the soldiers, and remind soldiers of what they were fighting for. These soldiers would die fighting to make sure their flag wasn’t taken by the enemy. Unlike their southern states, the Union did not adopt the trend to have battle flags, instead the Union mainly flew the American Flag. The Confederate States of America (CSA) had three main flags during this war. These flags included the first flag, which was the “Stars and Bars”.

“The Congress shall have power to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States (Corn-Revere).” This quote shows the controversy of the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights. Many people today believe that the freedom to express their opinions is a founding principle that can never be taken away. In order to understand Flag Burning, one must interpret and analyze the Constitution and the First Amendment.

The Constitution of the United States of America is something that all Americans value greatly; it protects our basic human rights by forbidding the government of violating them. Recently, there has been much discussion about a possible violation of said rights, specifically creating a law to ban the desecration of the American flag. President-elect Donald Trump recently stated his opinion on social media about the issue, however he proposed inconceivable punishments for the action. This issue of desecrating the American flag is deeply rooted in American history, including multiple Supreme Court decisions.

Throughout history, Americans have fought hard to gain independence and the freedoms that come with it. However, some choose to test the limitations of those freedoms. For some time, Americans have shown their disgust of the American government by burning flags, and even cutting them up to use as clothing. Although mocking the American government and the flag is disrespectful, revoking the right to do so would be a violation of freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by the First Amendment. Those who support the no-flag burning amendment argue that the United States flag is a special case. Because it would undermine the constitution and set a dangerous precedent that will make it easier for others enact restrictive amendments to the