Alabama senate candidate says NFL players breaking law with protests
Roy Moore, a Republican who is running for the U.S Senate in Alabama, said that NFL players who take a knee during the playing of the national anthem are breaking the law.
"It’s against the law, you know that?" Moore said in an interview with Time magazine. "It was a act of Congress that every man stand and put their hand over their heart. That’s the law."
Moore is referring to Title 36 (section 171) of the United States Code:
(b) Conduct During Playing. — During a rendition of the national anthem —
(1) when the flag is displayed —
(A) individuals in uniform should give the military salute at the first note of the anthem and maintain that position until the last note;
(B) members of the Armed Forces and veterans who are present but not in uniform may render the military salute in the manner provided for individuals in uniform; and
(C) all other persons present should face the flag and stand at attention with their right hand over the heart, and men not in uniform, if applicable, should remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart; and
(2) when the flag is not displayed, all present should face toward the music and act in the same manner they would if the flag were displayed
Where Moore is incorrect, is that these codes are just that, codes. There is no law about conduct during the national anthem.
According to a Congressional Research Service report to Congress in 2008, which lists several codes involving the flag -- including that it shouldn't be worn as apparel or used as bedding or drapery -- violation of the codes will not result in any penalty or punishment.
“The Flag Code is a codification of customs and rules established for the use of certain civilians and civilian groups. No penalty or punishment is specified in the Flag Code for display of the flag of the United States in a manner other than as suggested. Cases ... have concluded that the Flag Code does not proscribe conduct, but is merely declaratory and advisory."
Even though he was a chief justice in the Alabama state Supreme Court, Moore has defied court orders and lawsuits and twice been removed from the bench.
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