Yes, you read that right.
Despite the 1989 Supreme Court ruling that clearly deemed flag desecration to be a form of protected speech, the police department in Urbana, Illinois decided to arrest a 22-year-old man for burning an American flag over the July 4 holiday. Needless to say, the state’s attorney says no charges will be filed. Her office will also ask state legislators to review the legality of the statute that allowed for the arrest.
You see, it’s not all the Urbana P.D.’s fault. For some reason, Illinois has had an anti-flag desecration law on its books since 2013. This appears to be the first time it has actually been used, however.
Though Urbana Police brought the man in on flag-burning and disorderly conduct, they say they were predominantly worried about his safety. They first caught wind of his antics because of the outrage that ensued after he posted pictures of the flag burning on social media. Some commenters even threatened his life.
The man said he burned the flag to protest a series of American injustices. But, by the looks of it, he could just be starved for attention too.
Ironically, he ended his post with the hashtag, #ArrestMe.
And so they did.