Confederate Flag Burning Is Illegal In Some Places
By Bob Small
We live in a land where it’s legal to burn a US Flag but illegal to burn a Confederate Flag.
At least maybe. The Supreme Court has yet to rule about banning flag burning regarding those that aren’t our national symbol of unity.
In Spence vs Washington (1974) the Court, after all, rejected the state of Washington’s argument that “promoting respect for the flag or preserving the flag as a symbol of the nation constituted important government interests”.
The Court reinforced it in 1989 in the 5-4 Texas vs Johnson decision.
We honor the rulings of the US Supreme Court, even when we disagree with them.
This means Pennsylvania can’t pass an anti-flag burning law, without a Federal one that passes Supreme Court muster.
Gene Stilp has been on a flag-burning tour of central Pennsylvania. However, in November, he reached a $10,000 settlement with Bellefonte, Pa., and has numerous other suits against various towns including State College.
In several Southern States, there is a Confederate Flag Day, this year having been on March 4.
I missed it too.
It was signed into Arkansas law by Governor Orval Faubus on Feb. 28, 1957.
There have been clashes over the Confederate Flag Day.
The burning of the Confederate Flag is illegal in some Southern States.
It has yet to be ascertained whether the bans would pass constitutional muster, however, as nobody has apparently been arrested while attempting to burn one.
The Confederate Flag is a symbol of an unfortunate myth. It would be nice to see it simply pass into history.
Couldn’t we come to the place where we mourn all American soldiers who have died during war as Americans?
Lastly, why give such power to a symbol? Why should the burning of any flag substitutes as shorthand for a cogent argument for a political stand?
