Final answer:
The Supreme Court ruled in Texas v. Johnson that flag desecration is protected symbolic speech under the First Amendment, and subsequent attempts to criminalize it were deemed unconstitutional.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Supreme Court addressed the question of whether desecration of the national flag is a form of speech protected under the First Amendment in the landmark case Texas v. Johnson in 1989. In a 5-to-4 vote, the Court held that burning a flag as an act of protest is a form of symbolic speech that the First Amendment protects. This decision asserted the principle that the government may not prohibit expression of an idea, even if society finds it offensive or disagreeable.
Following this ruling, Congress passed the Flag Protection Act to criminalize flag desecration, but the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional in 1990, further reinforcing the protection of symbolic speech under the First Amendment. This has led to ongoing debates and proposals for a Flag Desecration Amendment, none of which have been ratified to date.