00:00Flag burning. It's the official way to retire a worn-out flag. But Trump signed an executive
00:05order making this a punishable offense. But does this order go against the First Amendment?
00:10Let me explain. In 1989, the Supreme Court decided in Texas v. Johnson that flag burning
00:16is an act of symbolic speech. Just as Brennan wrote in the majority opinion that the government
00:21may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself
00:27offensive, saying the action was protected under the First Amendment. Trump acknowledges this ruling
00:33in his order, but argues flag burning incites riots and should not be considered protected.
00:40Because what happens when you burn a flag is the area goes crazy. If you have hundreds of people,
00:47they go crazy. You could do other things. You can burn this piece of paper. But when you burn the
00:53American flag, it incites riots. Even some conservative voices like Jesse Kelly are taking
00:59issue with the order and possible free speech violation. And because straight facts always
01:04come with receipts, more at san.com.
Comments