Any law up to and including an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that criminalizes the act of burning an American flag is both unconstitutional and an affront to the principles of freedom established by the Founding fathers. However, flag burning has become a cyclical issue that Congress addresses every few years, about election time. It’s an issue based on emotion alone, not reason. Ironically, those that feel it their patriotic duty to support such law or amendment choose to ignore the First Amendment to the Constitution that guarantees the freedom of speech and expression which the flag represents. Jonathan Alter, a journalist for Newsweek Magazine referred to the debate as a phony issue. According to Alter, “any member of Congress who supports amending the Bill of Rights for the first time in the history of this country for a non-problem like a flag-burning is showing serious disrespect for our Constitution and for the values for which brave Americans gave their lives.”
The threat to the precepts upon which the country was founded is by far more of a danger than is the disrespect shown by the random act of burning cloth to make a statement. While considered by the vast majority of Americans as a contemptible act, flag burning is an exercise of the freedom the flag itself represents. Former U.S. Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell, though personally offended by the act, said, “I would not amend that great shield of democracy [the Constitution] to hammer a few miscreants.” Powell believes that a constitutional amendment banning flag burning is “a sign of weakness and fear.”
The Veterans Defending the Bill of Rights, a group that includes former Astronauts and U.S. Senator John Glenn, have joined together to decry such an amendment. Supreme Court Judge Antonin Scalia, who leans heavily conservative, his methodology in defense of explicit Constitutional rights has allowed for alliances with liberal justices regarding this matter. Scalia supports the Court’s position regarding flag burning, which is “a form of political expression protected under the First Amendment” even though he harbors a deep-seated contempt for anyone that would burn the flag (“Antonin Scalia”, 1999).
The issue would be considered humorous if it were not so serious an insult to the freedoms that Americans enjoy and wish to spread throughout the world. For example, members of Congress have actually debated whether or not a representation of the flag worn in the form of a swimsuit would be considered a crime under the proposed amendment. They, however, have not publicly debated if it would be a criminal offense if say; a politician handed out autographed flags when politicking.
With other, more pressing issues to be concerned about such as a floundering economy, two foreign wars went horribly wrong, a broken health care system, and an out-of-control federal deficit, by comparison, flag burning is a non-issue. Regardless, it should not be an issue at all as it is already covered by the First Amendment. In the history of the country, only 45 incidents of flag burning have been documented. This includes the period of the Vietnam War. Even if this country was not built upon principles of freedom, it would still be a non-issue especially given the gravity of other problems facing the nation.
Flag burning is unlike other issues as it is based only on emotion. During the history of the nation, amendments have been added, mostly to expand civil liberty flag-burning amendment would restrict these liberties. What’s next, amending the Constitution to disallow governmental dissent? (see Patriot Act) America is unique among other nations in that it protects the rights of speech for those of a minority opinion. The protections this country provides to those that would exercise the Constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech and expression, especially when it offends the majority, is the litmus test showing how much we are dedicated to the ideologies that the flag represents.
References
- Alter, Jonathan. (2006). “Phony Issue: Why Senate Approval of a Pending Constitutional Amendment to Ban Flag Burning Would Trivialize American Values and the Bill of Rights.” Newsweek.
- “Antonin Scalia.” (1999). Supreme Court History.org.