Should the student who lowered and tore up the Mexican flag at UNM be prosecuted?

Question

Peter Lynch never imagined that pulling a Mexican flag from a university flagpole and ripping it apart would thrust him into the center of a nationwide argument. Lynch, a University of New Mexico student and Air Force veteran, said he was angry on Sept. 17 when he saw the Mexican flag flying without the United States flag, a violation of flag etiquette. "I was livid with the situation, and it wasn't the fact that it was the Mexican flag," said Lynch, 30. "It was the fact that it was any foreign banner." UNM police charged Lynch with misdemeanor criminal damage to property. Lynch and the university concede that the incident resulted from miscommunication— someone simply failed to take down the Mexican flag when the U.S. flag was lowered. But it obviously touched a nerve, sparking strong reaction from both sides.Belshaw: Apology Should Be the End of Flag Flap Email comments Local talk show lines were flooded with calls, blogs were abuzz, letters and e-mails poured into the Journal and hundreds of motorcyclists are making plans to rally on Oct. 7, the day of UNM President David Schmidly's inauguration. Was it an act of patriotism or an act of hate?


“But why should any forgeign flag fly at a U.S. University for any reason?”Indeed that is the question.Unless this is Mexico why would we be celebrating Mexican Independence Day?

Answer 1

Instead of tearing it up, he should have burned it.

The fact that somebody "forgot" to take it down is questionable in my mind.

The parade for the Whole Enchilada Fiesta here in Las Cruces this past weekend had people marching with Mexican flags, and were there any American flags in these people's hands as well? No. Arrogance runs rampant with those people, and they certainly have no respect whatsoever for our flag, even though they seek to come here to take advantage of what our flag stands for.

He should have burned the damn thing.

Answer 2

As a UNM alumni and a New Mexico native here my take..
(1) Who is teaching the ROTC unit on proper flag protocol??? It is my understanding that they took down the US flag and ran the Mexican flag back up. This would have been a golden opportunity for someone at ROTC to explain proper US flag protocol.
(2) Where were the Mexican through all this? They ran their flag up and hit the road. If you are going to engage in flag raising in this country, there are long standing protocols, learn and following them.
(3) Where were the Latino UNM Administration members when action could have been taken to correct the situation?Sitting on their thumbs as the historically have done? Would they be rushing to apologise to our US veterans if it had been the US flag and Mexican students? Don't kid yourself.
(4) Does Mr. Lynch have the right to vent some anger after dealing the the 3 groups above who refused to follow proper flag protocols? Sure he does. Should he have torn up the flag, probably not but he has said that already.
(5) Would this have happened at a Mexican university on the 4th of July? NO, they would have shot the American students for trying to raise a US flag.

Answer 3

I think the student handled it the wrong way, but he shouldn't be prosecuted. Instead of ripping it down (which I would be tempted to do, too), he should have immediately contacted someone at the University and requested that it immediately be remedied. I cannot understand how it was a "miscommunication". Anyone who is in a position of being a flag bearer should be adequately trained on protocol and flag regulations, and I hope the University takes necessary measures to ensure that this never happens again. I also think that whomever made the "mistake" should make a public apology.

Answer 4

The proper response would be to call attention to it. This person robbed himself of his own moral power by giving the university police the luxery of thinking about his conduct and wrong doing.
To win a battle like this you must keep the burden of immorality upon the institution or individual who wrongfully flew the Mexican flag over American soil. In other words never give your opponent the luxery of thinking about your behavior when they have done wrong and know it.
I would have called the president's office and announced that I was calling the local news station over their error and that they better get the flag down fast as this is not Mexican territory. I would then use my cell phone to get a picture of it before they could hide their error, in order to file a complaint with the State of New Mexico.

Answer 5

No, he should not be prosecuted, even though he technically did destroy someone else's property. However, the University should face stiff financial penalties for ignoring the rules regarding the flying of national flags.

The Mexican national flag has meaning here only on the grounds of Mexican embassies/consulates and on the grounds of the United Nations. Outside those areas it is just a piece of cloth like my shirt.

Answer 6

I feel Mr. Dick should go to Mexico and put up an American flag above the Mexican flag and see if there is any reaction! When I lived in the Middle East I respected their flag and their country and came home to put a flag pole up where I could fly our American flag everyday. This is America and if they want to celebrate their Mexican holidays then they should go back to Mexico and celebrate!

Answer 7

He was right to be angry that the Mexican flag was flying there. And I agree that there's really no reason for the Mexican flag to be flying in the US at all, let alone at a publicly funded institution.

However, regardless of his reasons, what he did was vandalism and wrong. He should have gone through the proper channels to rectify the situation. Or at the very least he could have removed the Mexican flag without destroying it.

Answer 8

No foreign flag should fly at a US government facility, as a state funded university is, that is for sure, except possibly lower than the US flag if welcoming a foreign dignitary. Which doesn't make vandalism ok.

Answer 9

Firstly, if they failed to take down the mexican flag after they took down the American Flag, doesn't that mean the mexican flag was flying above Our Flag. This goes to show that any non American can come into our country, burn our flag, march against America, and any other anti-American thing they want to do, and they are protected under the constitution, while an American citizen, defending his/her country from acts like this one, gets punished. Why can't our constitution protect its citizens vs. protecting people on American soil. If mexico, puerto rico, canada, france, any other country is better than ours, move back. You don't have to be here, but this is America and if people want to live here, they should speak our language, fly our flag, and respect our laws. Mark my word, someday in the the future of our lifetimes, we will have another war in our country, but it won't be against Al-queda or any other Muslim group, it will be against those that do not belong here, to finally get them out and to stop ruining our country.

Answer 10

He should be charged with destruction of personal property. I don't care what it is - or why he ruined it- YOU DON'T have the right to take - or break- other people's things.

This is something I am trying to teach my toddlers. I would hope by the time they are adults they would understand this very basic statement.

* I do agree that the flag should not be
being flown- especially without the US flag*