On August 22, 1984, a young Gregory Lee Johnson approached the Dallas City hall in
protest of the policies of the Reagan administration. Yet, the protest quickly escalated with Johnson setting an American flag on fire. Consequently, one of the mot influential legal battles regarding the freedom of speech ensued, with dissension among the Supreme Courts at a high point.
The freedom of speech is perhaps one of the most iconic trademarks of the United States, and the concept of freedom was even transcribed into the United States national anthem. Ever since its creation along with the nine other amendments on September 25, 1789, the freedom of speech prohibits the “[abridgement of] the freedom of speech, or of the press.” In simpler terms, it allowed Americans to express their opinions freely without fear of persecution. Yet, many confuse such unique privilege with consequences. While one is not subjected to punishment by law, siding with an unpopular belief may result in one’s unpopularity within their community. Unfortunately, many fail to understand such implications of the privilege, and as a result falsely believe that it is an inherent trait of their American identity. Additionally, there have been instances where the “divine right” of the freedom of speech were abused to yield negative consequences on those whom the “offender” is not fond of. For instance, senator McCarthy, the inspiration behind the Red Scare, accused and incriminated over two hundred individuals who he alleged to be “spies working for the communist government.” While such exaggerated incidents may be rare, it is certainly a gaurentee that it will not be the last to happen within the United States. Furthermore, the freedom of speech continues to be a heated debate across the nation as the limits of such responsibility remains ambiguous.
During the Republican National Convention in 1984 at Dallas, Texas, a man by the name of Gregory Lee Johnson approached the Dallas City Hall along with other fellow protestors. Johnson then took down an American flag and set fire to it. Such incident sparked a massive debate, sending shockwaves throughout the nation. Furthermore, Johnson’s trial by the state of Texas only added fuel to the fire(pun intended). As such, the responsibility resides on the United States Supreme Court to resolve such conflict. Fortunately for Johnson, the supereme court’s decision “ruled in a 5-4 decision in favor of Johnson.” The court agrued that Johnson’s burning of the flag represents a symbolic demonstration of the freedom of speech, and consequently is under the protection of the first amendment. Yet, the ruling of the supreme court sparked further outrage, especially among those whom disagrees with the eventual outcome. Justice Brennan, a Supreme Court who firmly disagrees with the ruling, argues which “precisely because it is our flag that is involved, one's response to the flag burner may exploit the uniquely persuasive power of the flag itself,” or that the persuasive powers and divine histories of the American flag constitutes its sacredness, and hence the destruction of such representation of heritage shall be punishable by law. similarly, Justice Rehnquist along with two other dissenting justices quotes 18 U.S.C. 700(a): “Whoever knowingly casts contempt upon any flag of the United States by publicly mutilating, defacing, defiling, burning, or trampling upon it shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.”
While I am by no means a lawmaker or quite frankly anybody who are qualified to make an opinion on such a case, I am permitted to express my own beliefs regarding such incident. As such, it is my firm opinion that Johnson should be charged for the price of the flag yet reiieved from all other legal obligations. While the burning of the flag may be a symbolism of the freedom of speech as described in the trial of the Supreme Court, Johnson should still be fined for the value of the destroyed flag as compensation for property damage. Additionally, I believe Johnson should be freed all other legal obligations due to the severity of his actions, which yielded no injuries or impacts to any surrounding entities. As such, I stand closely with the decisions of the Supreme Court.
The incident of Johnson vs. Texas stands as a reminder of the limits of the freedoms of speech; while Johnson could’ve easily avoided the drama which ensued, he was extremely fortunate as evident from his sentencing. As such, one should always exercise caution and temperance while expressing one’s opinions.
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