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The Opposing case of Texas v. Johnson

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The Supreme Court’s decision on the case of Texas v. Johnson has been a controversial one, as it involves the burning of our national symbol, the American flag. It leads to the question: Does the desecration of the American flag a way of expressing speech that is protected by the first amendment? Shouldn't the destruction of a true American symbol be protected and preserved, as it is a symbol that represents our country? There is a great amount of criticism that Texas v. Johnson has been faced with; most of which are valid points that could contribute to possibly overriding this decision of Texas v. Johnson in the future. August 22, 1984, marked the day of the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas. Gregory Lee Johnson was …show more content…

The flag is a symbol of freedom and prosperity, and of hope. It is also used to express patriotism for example, in which solders raise the flag to symbolize an American victory in war. The American flag is the symbol that exemplifies our nation. Justice Stevens, who disagreed with the majority’s argument, states in his dissenting opinion that: “The ideas of liberty and equality have been an irresistible force in motivating leaders like Patrick Henry, Susan B. Anthony, and Abraham Lincoln, schoolteachers like Nathan Hale and Booker T. Washington, the Philippine Scouts who fought at Bataan, and the soldiers who scaled the bluff at Omaha Beach. If those ideas are worth fighting for -- and our history demonstrates that they are -- it cannot be true that the flag that uniquely symbolizes their power is not itself worthy of protection from unnecessary desecration.” (Texas v. Johnson, 1989, Dissenting Opinion, http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0491_0397_ZD1.html) The desecration of the flag is a way of expressing your feelings against the country, while showing no appreciation for what these people have done to make our country the way it is. It is a symbolic way to express hatred towards the US, and it should not be allowed, as the flag characterizes our history and who we are as a country, the fifty United States of America. Even though the first amendment allows freedom of speech, does not mean that there cannot be punishment for disrespecting

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