The Long, Sometimes Painful History of the First Amendment

Texas v. Johnson (1989)
During a protest outside the 1984 GOP convention, Gregory Johnson, a member of a Communist youth group, burned an American flag. Johnson, (seen above at the time of his arrest), was charged with violating a Texas law that prohibits vandalizing respected objects. He was convicted, sentenced to one year in prison, and fined $2,000. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned that conviction and the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, agreed, saying that that the statute used to convict him violated the constitutional guarantee to freedom of speech.

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