Trump Attempts to Criminalize Burning the American Flag
But is it a violation of the First Amendment?
According to News Nation, the Trump administration has attempted to find a way to investigate those who burn the American flag for additional charges. We are allowed to burn the flag if we so choose because we’re allowed to criticize our government and our country if we so choose. Taking that away is the very tyranny we sought to escape with our American Revolution.
The media narrative will be the Executive Order that demands flag burning be punished by one year in jail. The truth is a bit more nuanced, though it is worth examining. They will look into other ways the person can be punished, which is how others have been punished in the past by destroying or burning Leftist symbols like the Pride Flag and the Black Lives Matter flag. Those were deemed hate crimes.
In some cases, other charges were brought to punish the person for the hate crime, as with these cases below:
When it comes to BLM, the destruction itself is seen as a hate crime, which can be punished with jail time. See below:
However, I believe there is a distinction when it comes to the United States flag. Burning it might be a hate crime, but that is our right as Americans. We should preserve that right, regardless of the circumstances.
For one thing, we’re all Americans with the same rights. I would never burn the flag myself but the reason I’m proud to be an American is that I have the right to free speech.
That’s my opinion. What do you think?
agreed. but I also think we should have the right to burn BLM flags etc. free speech is free speech.
Burning the flag on private property with consent of the property owners (flag and property) is fine, not a First Amendment issue in my view. But burning a flag that you own on public property or on somebody's else's property should not be accorded more protection than setting fires not otherwise allowed. For example, suppose I decide to burn a bunch of boxes on a public street or public park but not at a grill devoted to contain fires. That is arson of some sort and I'm sure unlawful. So if one decides to burn a flag where burning anything else at the same location would be considered unlawful, it shouldn't be accorded extra protection based on some juiced up First Amendment claim.