The Supreme Court case that struck down a Texas law banning flag burning as protected symbolic speech is:

• A. Texas v. Johnson (1989)
• B. Citizens United v. FEC (2010)
• C. Lau v. Nichols (1974)
• D. Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)

Answer: (A)

Symbolic speech can be protected under the First Amendment, not just spoken or written words. The idea is that expressive acts communicate ideas, and the government generally cannot suppress those ideas simply because they are controversial or offensive.

In this case, the Court struck down a Texas law banning flag burning because burning the flag is a form of expressive conduct. The decision holds that banning a specific way of expressing a political message (flag desecration) punishes a viewpoint and suppresses speech, which the First Amendment does not permit. The ruling emphasizes that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea just because it disapproves of the idea or finds it offensive, as long as the conduct isn’t a tightly limited exception to free speech.

This case is a clear illustration of protecting expressive conduct and limits on government power to regulate symbolic acts. Other listed cases deal with different issues—campaign spending by corporations, language rights in education, and reproductive-rights jurisprudence—so they don’t address flag burning or symbolic speech in the same way.