Jasmia Aiken's Flag Burning Pro w Soapstone .pdf - Name:...

Name: Jasmia
Core: 3
Burning the American Flag: First Amendment Right or a Crime?
Directions: Students will…
--Read the article below, using the “Comments” and “Highlight” features to annotate the text as you read. This
will help you with the task.
--Complete the SOAPSTone chart and response questions. Please remember to read the directions carefully
so that you can get full credit!!
ARTICLE:
Point: The Right to Burn the Flag is Protected by Freedom of Speech
When a citizen of a nation is dissatisfied with the government, what can he or she do to try to create change? What if
voting in elections and participating in local government doesn’t seem to be enough? This is exactly the position some
citizens find themselves in when they make the choice to burn the flag as a form of protest. Many see it as a last resort. All
citizens must understand that the right to burn the flag is protected by America’s Constitution.
There are many people who do not support the legal right to burn the flag. They feel that burning the flag is callous
toward the military servicemen and women who have fought and died for their country. Anyone can see how this act
would be hurtful toward members of the armed forces. However, it is not plausible to say that in order to protect
freedom, you must limit the very freedoms you are trying to protect. Even some service members agree. According to a
veteran of the Vietnam War, Richard Savage, "...Those who would burn the flag destroy the symbol of freedom, but
amending the Constitution would destroy part of freedom itself."
The United States Supreme Court agrees that it would be unethical to limit citizens’ personal freedoms with laws against
burning the flag. In 1984, Gregory Lee Johnson burned the American flag at the Republican National Convention in Dallas