The president cannot tell people they must stand when the national anthem is played. He claims that kneeling disrespects the flag.
There was a 1989 Supreme Court decision resulting from a Texan man who burned a flag. The Court decided that burning the flag brought harm to nobody and it allowed him to express his opinion, his First Amendment rights.One of the justices wrote, the burned flag becomes no less symbolic of our nation, because its tatters and burns show that the greatness it represents has not been destroyed. (Let me say that I personally would not burn a flag.)
I remembered this several years ago when Colin Kaepernick's kneeling during the anthem became publicized. It is his right to protest peacefully. In fact what he has protested is not our sovereign independent country but the racism flagrantly demonstrated by our various police forces.
In reviewing its stance regarding the flag, the Supreme Court justices have stated "A principal function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute". And also, "A state may not criminally punish a person for uttering words critical of the flag"
In fact, Conservative Reagan-appointed Justice Antonin Scalia in 2012 stated on CNN, "By punishing a person for disrespecting the flag, we dilute the freedom that this cherished emblem represents.." He explained that a person cannot be convicted for burning a flag or for uttering words against it: “If I were king, I would not allow …burning the American flag. However, …[our] First Amendment says that the right of free speech shall not be abridged.”
Last I'll say don't let the president's twisting of the situation carry your emotions. He says that failing to stand at the anthem is disrespect of our military, which has nothing to do with Kaepernick's identified purpose to spotlight the previously stated racism of the police forces.
No comments:
Post a Comment