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FIREstatement on President Trump’s executive order to outlaw flag burning
On Aug. 25, President Donald Trump issued an cracking down on flag burning, which is protected expressive activity under the First Amendment. During the signing, Trump remarked, “If you burn a flag, you get one year in jail.” The following statement can be attributed to ĂŰÖĎăĚŇ Chief Counsel Bob Corn-Revere.
President Trump may believe he has the power to revise the First Amendment with the stroke of a pen, but he doesn’t.
Flag burning as a form of political protest is protected by the First Amendment. That’s nothing new. While people can be prosecuted for burning anything in a place they aren’t allowed to set fires, the government can’t prosecute protected expressive activity — even if many Americans, including the president, find it “uniquely offensive and provocative.”
You don’t have to like flag burning. You can condemn it, debate it, or hoist your own flag even higher. The beauty of free speech is that you get to express your opinions, even if others don’t like what you have to say.
Your burning questions on flag burning
The right to burn the American flag sparks heated debate, but the First Amendment protects flag burning in most cases.
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