The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the citizens of the United States the freedom of speech. This is the freedom that some people cling to most closely. The right to voice one’s opinion and to be heard on matters is what makes the United States great, some might say, but for those who have no audible voice, who desperately communicate through symbols and non-verbal communication, what does this freedom mean to them? Flag burning has been in the line of political fire for centuries. For centuries people who engage in the act of flag burning defend their actions and for centuries “true” patriots call these flag burners unpatriotic, but in all the mix flag burning should not be considered an act of vandalism but an act of constitutionalism as these activists use non-verbal communication to voice their political beliefs.
Legally, there is a fine line between using an American flag in the midst of a political movement and desecration of the symbol of the “Free World.” This fine line has confused the general population over many years leaving the decision about who is right about the topic flailing the same line of on basis of morality. There are those who say if the flag, that symbol that flies high above all others in this country, is to stand for that which we call the “Free World,” should citizens then not have a liberty to showcase all that it is meant to represent? As the law stands, the non-verbal action of flag burning in the pursuit of communication with one’s government in the U.S. is legal; however, there are those who strongly believe that the 1st Amendment of the Constitution does not protect this act.
To those who limit the 1st Amendment to that which they personally deem as moral, they inevitably beg the following question: In a country built on the foundation of treason (that which separated us from Great Britain in the first place), what is it that we are so afraid? We, as a country, are more than just a symbol. We survive on the foundation of ideals. One of which is the ideal that every man, woman, and child has the right to speak their mind. A flag is what you make of it; citizens of this country have made it a symbol for all that we stand for: morals, ideals, treason, democracy, citizenship, etc. Should it not also speak to that which we defend… Our rights?

10/28/2016

Posted on 10/28/2016
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