Texas vs Johnson
Texas vs Johnson
The U.S code does state that the burning of the flag is illegal, however the United States Supreme Court has upheld, several times, that the burning of the the flag is a protected form of speech. This causes much controversy, and is still being argued to modern day. When one sees the flag burning, they believe it to be a representation of the American country and it's values. Those who support the flag believe that the symbol is sacrosanct and that there is never a justification for it. However, America on many occasions has implemented it's freedom of speech, and believes it is that freedom that separates them from much of the world today. If someone is allowed to hang the flag on the front of their house for all to see, then someone wishing to burn the flag should also have the right to do so, even if the consequence is offending their extreme patriotic neighbors. If these two opposing sides are not able have equal freedom as one another, then we as Americans have failed what we so passionately stand for. Freedom of speech would only be justified as long as it did not ruin the image of America, making America nothing more than a dictatorship.
Texas vs Johnson was one of a series of flag desecration cases challenging state and federal statues prohibiting the burning of the American flag. The court said, "Recognizing that the right to differ is the centerpiece of our First Amendment freedoms, a government cannot mandate by fiat a feeling of unity in its citizens. Therefore that very same government cannot carve out a symbol of unity and prescribe a set of approved messages to be associated with that symbol . . ." The court also concluded that the flag burning in this case did not cause or threaten to cause a breach of the peace. The supreme court all knowingly knew that putting Mr. Johnson in jail would not only cause suspicion as to why one was not allowed to have an opinion opposing the American culture, but to what kind of
The U.S code does state that the burning of the flag is illegal, however the United States Supreme Court has upheld, several times, that the burning of the the flag is a protected form of speech. This causes much controversy, and is still being argued to modern day. When one sees the flag burning, they believe it to be a representation of the American country and it's values. Those who support the flag believe that the symbol is sacrosanct and that there is never a justification for it. However, America on many occasions has implemented it's freedom of speech, and believes it is that freedom that separates them from much of the world today. If someone is allowed to hang the flag on the front of their house for all to see, then someone wishing to burn the flag should also have the right to do so, even if the consequence is offending their extreme patriotic neighbors. If these two opposing sides are not able have equal freedom as one another, then we as Americans have failed what we so passionately stand for. Freedom of speech would only be justified as long as it did not ruin the image of America, making America nothing more than a dictatorship.
Texas vs Johnson was one of a series of flag desecration cases challenging state and federal statues prohibiting the burning of the American flag. The court said, "Recognizing that the right to differ is the centerpiece of our First Amendment freedoms, a government cannot mandate by fiat a feeling of unity in its citizens. Therefore that very same government cannot carve out a symbol of unity and prescribe a set of approved messages to be associated with that symbol . . ." The court also concluded that the flag burning in this case did not cause or threaten to cause a breach of the peace. The supreme court all knowingly knew that putting Mr. Johnson in jail would not only cause suspicion as to why one was not allowed to have an opinion opposing the American culture, but to what kind of