Flag Bans and the First Amendment: Navigating the Legal Boundaries of Symbolic Speech

By Diana Smith In 2025, Utah passed House Bill 77 (“HB 77”) without the Governor’s signature. HB 77, a controversial bill, is the first in the nation to ban non-sanctioned flags[1] from all public schools and government property. HB 77’s professed goal is to make classrooms neutral spaces but the bill’s sponsor “repeatedly constructed the […] The post Flag Bans and the First Amendment: Navigating the Legal Boundaries of Symbolic Speech appeared first on Vermont Law Review .