Firefighter suspended for not removing flag
Saturday, October 17th, 2009
A Chester City firefighter has been suspended without pay after refusing to take an American flag sticker off his locker this week. The Fire Commissioner says the decision to ban all decorations from the outside of lockers was intended to provide a clear rule that could be easily understood.
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As long as the ban on decorating lockers is uniformly applied, Temple University Constitutional Law Professor David Kairys says the firefighter has a weak case.
Kairys: What he really seems to be claiming is that he thinks that his speech is of the highest order because it's the flag, and therefore should be exempt. But they've decided that no speech whether it's favored by everybody, is gonna be put on those lockers anymore. And as long as they administer that even handedly seems to me he's not going to get anywhere.
Some firefighters say they didn't think the American flag was part of the list of items not allowed on locker doors.
The decision not to allow decorations on the outside of lockers came after a firefighter posted a cartoon some felt was offensive.