BOSTON (CBS/AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled unanimously against the city of Boston in a “Christian flag” flying controversy outside City Hall.
Writing for the court, Justice Stephen Breyer said that Boston “violated the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment” when it refused to fly a banner described as a Christian flag in 2017.
“We conclude that, on balance, Boston did not make the raising and flying of private groups’ flags a form of government speech,” the ruling stated. “That means, in turn, that Boston’s refusal to let Shurtleff and Camp Constitution raise their flag based on its religious viewpoint ‘abridg[ed]’ their ‘freedom of speech.’”
There are three flagpoles outside City Hall that fly the U.S., Massachusetts and Boston flags. Occasionally, the city takes down its own pennant and temporarily hoists another flag.
Although Boston had approved 284 straight applications — most involving the flags of other nations — a city official turned away Shurtleff and his Camp Constitution because he said he wanted to fly the Christian flag.