Student Flag Project

I just finished reading an article by Fox News.
It cause a lot of emotions to run through me and I thought this would be a useful topic here on this blog.
A college student (Susan Crane) in Maine (see picture) completed a Project for her class : Cultural Relationship of Art and the Personal Politic. For this class she decide to place Copies of the American Flag on the floor in a maze like pattern, then watched to see how many people would step on the flags or avoid them.

My first response to reading this was one of disgust. I was initially appalled that someone would plaster the floor with the American Flag then see how many people stepped on it. This girl should be reprimanded for desecrating such an important symbol. I was taught that you should never allow this. If I went to that school I would have been trying to pick the flags up or block them off. I was genuinely offended.
Then I read further along in the article.
The student (Susan Crane) noted : "Ninety-five to 98 percent of the people didn't walk on the flags."
I cheered inside, glad that people respected the symbol that means so much to so many. I read further and discovered that the student was hoping to make people think about their patriotism by placing this symbol in their path.
This is when my disgust disappeared. I was now approving of this stunt, as her goal was increase people's awareness of their patriotism, a noble goal indeed.
However, after I finished reading the article I came to a final conclusion:
I should have supported the student's project from the start, regardless of her intentions or the methods she used to get there.
Her right to free speech should have been supported by me at all times. I wanted her school to have stopped this before it started because I disagreed with her opinions (which I assumed were negative!). I wanted her right to free speech to be infringed so I would be more comfortable.
I feel ashamed.
So I say, BRAVO!, Susan Crane, for both increasing the awareness of personal feelings of patriotism, but also (and more importantly) reminding us why free speech is important.

Link to the Fox News Story

Link to the Original Story

Image copy write:
Bobbie Hanstein photos