Apparently it's illegal to desecrate a flag in the US.
What a strange, petty, fussy thing to be illegal in a country that makes such a big-ass deal of not even making hate speech illegal! Encouraging genocide is fine, but damaging a piece of fabric with symbolic value is illegal? Weird!
I do wonder how they manage to fit that into their broader legal framework. Desecrating a flag seems like the perfectly logical symbolic manifestation of legitimate protest against the reigning government, which is something that, if not explicitly legally enshrined, is certainly celebrated in the US. Desecrating a flag is elegant and effective as an act of symbolism while being harmless to all persons and properties except the flag itself. You'd think they'd tacitly encourage it so as to avoid more damaging forms of protest.
5 comments:
Apparently it's illegal to desecrate a flag in the US.
Not so. Flag desecration laws are always struck down in court. The Supreme Court of the US has ruled that flag burning and other similar acts are protected free speech.
For more info, see SCOTUS rulings Texas v. Johnson (1989) and United States v. Eichman (1990). Both upheld flag desecration as constitutionally protected freedom of expression.
There is a movement to pass an amendment to make it illegal, but it won't pass and won't hold up in court. Perhaps that's what your link is about. Sorry if this is repetitive, I can't get that link to load.
And yes, it is beyond silly and petty, but the US is VERY into phony displays of mindless patriotism.
The article is about two guys who were charged with desecrating a flag in the US, so I assume it has to somehow be illegal for them to be charged with it.
Same story, different link
Oh thanks, yes, I did see that. They were probably charged with something like destruction of personal property or trespassing or disturbing the peace. Bullshit, of course, but not flag desecration.
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