Argumentative Essay: Stop Burning The American Flag !

It is clear to see that flag burning causes tension, good tension as MLK would call it, that causes attention to be drawn to a topic and forces people to acknowledge the problem. Destroying the American flag is a powerful method of protest that says “This flag is useless because America is not what it is supposed to stand

Introductory paragraph “The flag is one of the most recognizable symbol of the United States.”      During the case of Johnson vs. Texas, I believe that Johnson was exercising his rights to free speech but I truly think that he should have done it somewhere else then a public square, someone could have gotten hurt by the flames of the burning flag, or Johnson could have gotten hurt because he was burning the flag around people who love the United States flag. I agree with the fact that Johnson was sentenced to 1 year in jail, he burned the Flag in Texas and in Texas they have a desecration law of violating the flag. From my own point of view, I think Johnson wasn’t exercising his rights to free speech but, he did it in the most absolutely

The general argument made by author William J. Brennan in his work, “Majority Opinion,” is that it is legal to burn the flag if it is a form of political protest. More specifically, Brennan argues that we can not criminally punish people for burning a flag: the only thing we can do is convince them that they are wrong. He writes that they only thing we can do is “ Persuade them that they are wrong.” In this passage, Brennan suggests that criminally punishing a person for burning the flag will decrease the values of the flag by opposing the First Amendment. In conclusion, Brennan’s belief is that we should not punish people for burning the flag, but convince them that they are wrong.

Dissenting opinion for Johnson Is there any sort of consequences to someone if they burn the American Flag? In the U.S Supreme Court case “Texas v. Johnson”, Johnson was jailed by the start of Texas due to the desecration of the American Flag. The U.S. Supreme Court accepted his case, and the majority opinion of the case decided it was not a criminal offence to burn a flag because of the First Amendment. We the dissenting opinion believe that the burning of the American Flag should be a criminal offence.

In 1984, protestor Gregory Lee Johnson marched to the Dallas Texas Convention Center. He stood on the front steps; the American flag in one hand, and a bottle of kerosene in the other. Exasperated by President Reagan’s policy, Johnson ignited the flag. Convicted by the Texas court, Johnson was charged with the desecration of a venerated object. Johnson claimed that burning the

Johnson went through a couple of courts before it hit the Supreme Court. It started at the Intermediate Court of Appeals after he was arrested and fined. Then it moved up to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals because he filed for review. When it got to this point his conviction was removed and the information was ordered to be dismissed. The Judge of that Court found that his action was constitutional because it was a type of symbolic speech.

After all the Southern states used the same flag when they supported slavery and fought against the Union. To most people, the flag represents racial discrimination supremacism and injustice. To add to that, the recent incident in 2015 states that a mass shooting occurred that targeted African-Americans in Charleston, South Carolina (journalistsresource.org). After that incident, the South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley removed the Confederate flag. That same week there were a bunch of protesters on that street against the decision of Gov. Haley

Summary of the case In 1989 Congress passed the Flag Protection Act, which made it clear that any individual who “knowingly mutilates, defaces, physically defiles, burns, maintains on the floor or the ground, or tramples upon” an American Flag can be prosecuted (get a fine or risk jail for year). The Act was passed after Supreme Court had made a law, which said that all flag destruction was forbidden. The law violated the 1st Amendment about free expression. Congress found a solution by passing the Flag Protection Act.

CRJU 1068 Should desecrating the American flag be illegal? The American flag is so loved because of what it represents; the land of the free. Unfortunately, that freedom also includes the ability to use or abuse that flag in protest.

The law in Texas at the time banned flag burnings. He was convicted, and the case was appealed to the Supreme Court. We ruled that Johnson’s right to free speech had been violated. He was expressing symbolic speech. We ruled that even though an opinion is unpopular, doesn’t mean we have the right to restrict his freedom of

3) Brummitt treated this ceremony as a battle and he would be the one flying the American flag once the smoke clears. Flag desecration and flag burning should not be protected by freedom of speech. The American flag is a National symbol and should not be infringed upon. Desecrating the American flag desecrates the hearts of past and present, men and women who have served for the United States of America.

Plus, in 1969, they made it a law that makes burning an american flag illegal and will not be tolerated. They could go to jail for burning the American flag, but they still do it and they still go unpunished. Why would we ever burn our flag? What did it do, It's not threatening your family, It's just waving around in the wind helplessly.

Virginia Foxx once said, “The American flag is the most recognized symbol of freedom and democracy in the world.” Americans should know that they live in the greatest countries known to man. People should not take the freedoms for granted and disrespect the American flag. The American flag should be protected against desecration because it is a symbol of freedom, the military uses the flag to honor those who fought for our country, and it represents historical achievements in American history.

The law states that is freedom of speech to burn our American Flag, but how is stomping and burning the symbol of this nation where our freedom of speech should be. Most do it out of anger toward our country, but why do they have to take such drastic measures to show their anger. Wattad stated” grant the flag special respect.” ( 1, 2008) It's not saying take away freedom of speech just grant something that represents what our soldiers are fighting for special respect.

The red white and blue flag that was never supposed to touch the ground, now lies there, flames engulfing it turning it to ash . What feeling comes to mind when you think of that? Some people are angry by the fact, some shrug at the thought of this Nation’s Flag being burned. Those are two different tones/feelings, just like the ones in William J. Brennan’s Texas v. Johnson Majority Opinion and Ronald J. Allen’s “American Flag Stands for Tolerance.”