Editing Flag of the United States (section)

===Flag etiquette===
{{Main|United States Flag Code}}
[[File:Vertical United States Flag.svg|thumb|left|upright|100px|The proper stationary vertical display. The union (blue box of stars) should always be in the upper-left corner.]]
[[File:Tattered Flag.jpg|thumb|upright|A tattered flag at Spokane Valley Police Headquarters, [[Spokane, Washington]]]]
[[File:US Navy 030915-N-8726C-007 lowers a tattered ensign.jpg|thumb|A proper and respectful manner of disposing of a damaged flag is a ceremonial burning (as seen here at [[Misawa Air Base]])]]
The United States Flag Code outlines certain guidelines for the flag's use, display, and disposal. For example, the flag should never be [[Flag dipping|dipped]] to any person or thing, unless it is the [[Ensign (flag)|ensign]] responding to a salute from a ship of a foreign nation. This tradition may come from the [[1908 Summer Olympics]] in London, where countries were asked to dip their flag to [[Edward VII|King Edward VII]]: the American flag bearer did not. Team captain [[Martin Sheridan]] is famously quoted as saying, "this flag dips to no earthly king", though the true provenance of this quotation is unclear.<ref>[http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv7n3/JOHv7n3i.pdf LA84 Foundation] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080909224103/http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/JOH/JOHv7n3/JOHv7n3i.pdf |date=September 9, 2008 }}. (PDF). Retrieved May 27, 2011.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070219000252/http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2005/06/24/olympics_history_feature.shtml London Olympics 1908 & 1948]. BBC. Retrieved May 27, 2011.</ref>

The flag should never be allowed to touch the ground and should be illuminated if flown at night. The flag should be repaired or replaced if the edges become tattered through wear. When a flag is so tattered that it can no longer serve as a symbol of the United States, it should be destroyed in a dignified manner, preferably by burning.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How to Properly Dispose of Worn-Out U.S. Flags |url=https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/story/article/2206946/how-to-properly-dispose-of-worn-out-us-flags/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.defense.gov%2FNews%2FFeature-Stories%2FStory%2FArticle%2F2206946%2Fhow-to-properly-dispose-of-worn-out-us-flags%2F |access-date=October 22, 2023 |website=U.S. Department of Defense |language=en-US}}</ref> The American Legion and other organizations regularly conduct flag retirement ceremonies, often on Flag Day, June 14. (The [[Boy Scouts of America]] recommends that modern nylon or polyester flags be recycled instead of burned due to hazardous gases produced when such materials are burned.)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://boyslife.org/about-scouts/scouting-around/16380/consider-recycling-not-burning-a-retired-flag/ |title=Consider Recycling, not Burning, a Retired Flag |publisher=[[Boy Scouts of America]] |year=2012 |access-date=July 6, 2012}}</ref>

The [[United States Flag Code|Flag Code]] prohibits using the flag "for any advertising purpose" and also states that the flag "should not be embroidered, printed, or otherwise impressed on such articles as cushions, handkerchiefs, napkins, boxes, or anything intended to be discarded after temporary use".<ref>4 U.S.Code Sec. 8(i).</ref> Both of these codes are generally ignored, almost always without comment.

Section 8, entitled "Respect For Flag", states in part: "The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery", and "No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform". Section 3 of the Flag Code<ref>4 U.S.Code Chapter 1&nbsp;Sec. 3.</ref> defines "the flag" as anything "by which the average person seeing the same without deliberation may believe the same to represent the flag of the United States of America". An additional provision that is frequently violated at sporting events is part (c) "The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free."<ref name="What does it mean to disrespect the U.S. Flag?">{{cite web |url=https://www.brandingthenations.com/blog/what-does-it-mean-to-disrespect-the-us-flag |title=What Does It Mean To Disrespect The U.S. Flag |last1=Green |first1=Michael |date=June 13, 2019 |website=brandingthenations.com |access-date=February 3, 2020}}</ref>

Although the Flag Code is U.S. federal law, there is no penalty for a private citizen or group failing to comply with the Flag Code, and it is not widely enforced—punitive enforcement would conflict with the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First Amendment]] right to [[freedom of speech]].<ref>''[[Texas v. Johnson]]'', 491 U.S. 397 (1989); ''[[United States v. Eichman]]'', 496 U.S. 310 (1990).</ref> Passage of the proposed [[Flag Desecration Amendment]] would overrule the legal precedent that has been established.