WASHINGTON - As the Senate began debate today on the Flag Desecration Amendment, the American Civil Liberties Union urged Senators to stand up for the First Amendment, warning that passage of the proposal would have a lasting and dramatic effect on free speech. The Senate is expected to vote on the amendment as early as tomorrow.

"Writing censorship into the Constitution would set a disturbing precedent," said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office. "The same document that abolished slavery and gave women the right to vote should not and must not be amended to restrict freedom. We urge the Senate to truly consider the implications of this legislation and stand up for the First Amendment."

The amendment has appeared before Congress several times over the past 12 years, provoking intense debate each time. But in recent years, the amendment’s margin of support has varied and several lawmakers have, in fact, repudiated their earlier support for the amendment and have become some of its most vigorous opponents. This year, both proponents and supporters of the amendment predict the closest vote ever, with only one vote preventing this amendment from being sent to the states for ratification.

Were that to happen, the measure would be the first limitation ever of a right protected in the Bill of Rights. The flag desecration amendment would essentially make it legal for federal, state, or local authorities to prohibit flag desecration, an action deemed protected speech by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1989 decision Texas v. Johnson.

"Our strength as a nation lies in our fervent commitment to the protection of all speech - even that with which we disagree," said Terri Ann Schroeder, ACLU Senior Lobbyist. "Hopefully, the Senate will take this opportunity to have an honest debate about the ramifications of the passage of this amendment. Senators should consider the dangerous precedent they would set by amending the Constitution to restrict freedom and should reject this proposal."

For more on the ACLU's concerns with the Flag Desecration Amendment, go to:

http://www.aclu.org/flag