Ethnography of the American Flag Essay

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.

The pledge of allegiance and “Star Spangled Banner” are examples of compulsive patriotism in America that not everyone sees. The Pledge of Allegiance and the “Star-Spangled Banner” are orthodoxes Americans have recited for many years since the 1800s. The pledge of allegiance was practiced everyday in the beginning of class, starting at kindergarten, having all the students and teachers participate. I do not call to mind ever learning about what the pledge signified or meant. Never did I ask myself why we said this pledge of allegiance every single day, it was just a mandatory order of each day. The “Star Spangled Banner” is the national anthem that is recited before sport’s events, like football games, and also at official government procedures. Both are traditions in America that show pride for their country, it’s freedom, and history.

As an American we can take our freedom for granted sometimes. In “Veterans Day: Never Forget Their Duty” John McCain illustrates “Sitting there, beneath that dim light bulb, a piece of white cloth, a piece of red cloth, another shirt and his bamboo needle, was my friend, Mike Christian” (7). In this quote John McCain reflects on his time in the military. This quote shows how much the American Flag meant to him and his comrades. They would risk getting brutally punished just to make a little flag, so they could do the Pledge of Allegiance every day. This quote relates with a quote from “What

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,

In looking at the American flag as one of America's artifacts, I have come to reconsider something I observed a couple of years ago. While traveling I have found that there are some similarities everywhere I go. I remember traveling through a few small rural towns in Massachusetts, where I live, for example. As i drove through one side of the town, I saw large beautiful flags, hung from beautiful houses. As I drove further those beautiful houses got scarcer and scarcer until that beautiful neighborhood was just a quick glimpse. I then began to see small houses and some tenements. Is is here that I did not see the American flag. Was it because the people there were not patriotic? Did they choose not to have a flag because they don't believe in America? On the other hand, did the wealthier society want to show off their patriotism, or was it merely hung outside their houses to shw that they achieved the American dream? What exactly was the flag a symbol of in these

Obviously flag burning is a fire hazard that can have a very harmful outcome to the environment and all of its surroundings. Another argument that is stated in the E.M.S.A. says “Many materials in clothing can burn” (E.M.S.A). “Consider

Fred Barbash, wrote “Does first flag symbolize "exclusion and hate," as some say?,” published in 2016 by the Washington Post, and argues that the first American flag could stand for racism and bigotry. Barbash, uses logos, pathos, and ethos to inscribe the racial tension growing around the first American flag controversy. Barbash uses rhetorical devices to really clasp the audience and to attract a variety of people.

Guns firing, soldiers yelling, we battle fiercely at Fort McHenry. Day breaks, and stars and stripes wave in the air. The American Flag stands for freedom, hope, equality, opportunity, and democracy. The flag represents the American Dream. We may not always realize it, but our flag also represents hope for a brighter and better tomorrow. Standing for the Pledge of Allegiance, my classmates and I don’t always think about what we’re saying or what we’re doing. Sometimes we just don’t recognize what the flag, the pledge, or even America means to people. The thing is, I feel so fortunate to live in a country like the United States; I just don’t know how fortunate I am sometimes. Some people, people who are not as fortunate as I am, dream of coming

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,

When you see the American flag, what is the first thing that pops into your head? Is it a war? A relative? A political leader? What? For me, I usually think of the Star Spangled Banner. I grew up on a military base in Germany. If the flag were being raised or lowered, you would see soldiers, and even civilians, standing at attention, saluting the flag. In a parade, as the flag was being carried in front by one of the brigades, everyone held his or her hand over his or her heart as the flag passed that person. Even in the theaters, before the movie would start, the Star Spangled Banner would be played while scenes of American flags in battles and peacetime were on the screen and everyone would stand, either at attention or with

“The US flag is a symbol of great pride” (Hills 2016). Ethan D. Hill from the University of Georgia states this, just as all Americans should know this. The American flag is a representation for the strength and power of this country and all that it has gone through. With that being said, not everyone sees the American flag in this way. Some take it upon themselves to show firsthand disrespect to the flag in desecrating it. Desecration is the act of burning something, in this case it is burning the flag that symbolizes the freedom of this great nation. It is obvious to most that this act should be illegal, seeing as there is no reason good enough to hurt the country in this way; however, some Americans believe otherwise.

The Star - Spangled Banner was written by Francis Scott Key as he watched his fellow Americans stand strong in their darkest hour. For over twenty four hours Fort McHenry was bombarded by British Navy, but the American troops fought, and so did their families. The Americans rallied around the singular flag that stood high in the fort, and a flag that was a target for the British armada. They planned to destroy the flag to disrupt moral, but the Americans refused to let it fall. They used that singular flag as motivation, and motivation that eventually won them the battle. The flag still holds the same purpose today. To remember those who have fought, or are currently fighting in our armies. It also serves as a source of pride, motivation, and patriotism towards our country. Knowing what our flag means to our history and our country, we can’t possibly keep letting our countries source of pride be disrespected by those attempting to promote their own cause. Are nations athletes that choose to display their displeasure with our nation’s current state, and disrespect what our flag means for our country.

I think Dread Scott wanted Americans to reflect on many things. What is the proper way do display/treat the flag? Why do we treat the flag the way we do? What does the flag mean to me? How can I display patriotism for my country?

acceptable to have a "narrow, special amendment to protect a special flag from desecration." ("Consequences" 2). Even Thomas Jefferson and James Madison denounced flag burning as a crime (Brady H 2). Others feel that flag desecration disrespects those who lost their lives for our country, stating the flag symbolizes the blood that runs through our country. George Whalen, a soldier, said "the stars and stripes of our nations flag is the symbol of our nation's values... It represents loyalty patriotism and love of our country." ("citizens" 3). Those against flag desecration must remember that the men and women who fought and died for our country were fighting for justice, freedom, and independence, all of which give one the right to desecrate the flag. Yes, the flag represents these freedoms, but the