So what would your association do if an owner insisted on hoisting the Confederate flag? What would be the reaction of your board of directors if the raising of this flag triggered protests in your community? So what could the Confederate flag resident argue if an association has an otherwise enforceable rule? (2) (a) Any Owner may respectfully display a portable and detachable flag of the United States or the Official Flag of the State of Florida and a portable and detachable official flag in a respectful manner not exceeding 4 1/2 feet by 6 feet and representing the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard. or a POW-MIA flag, regardless of the agreements, restrictions, statutes, rules or requirements of the association. Your board of directors could pass a rule prohibiting the raising of all flags that are not currently protected by Florida law. The protection of the Confederate flag against desecration is found in Section 256.10, F.S. does not seem to grant the right to fly it freely, given the agreements, restrictions, regulations, rules or regulations of an association. According to the principle of legal interpretation of the expressio unius est exclusio alterius, the mention of one thing implies the exclusion of another, and Section 720.304, F.S., does not protect the Confederate flag in its enumerated list of flags that deserve such protection against the private alliances of a community. Of course, there has been resistance, starting with President Donald Trump, who now views the rebel flag as a proud symbol of the South and has threatened to veto the defense bill if Confederate names are removed from military bases. Given that Chapter 720 of the Florida Act (the “HOA Act”) specifically lists the types of flags permitted in homeowners` associations, should the HOA Act prevail over Section 256.10? I`m sure this is one of the next trials we`ll see to reach the media. Like many things in the act, there are arguments on both sides of the issue.
When I represent the association, a valid argument (and perhaps the strongest argument) is that the HOA Act specifically lists which flags have been allowed, meaning that not all other flags are allowed. If I represent the owner, I would say that section 256.10 should be fully recognized within an association and that the owner should be allowed to use a Confederate flag for decorative or patriotic purposes. This is a dilemma that will be interesting to pursue when it finally reaches the courts. Needless to say, the Sons of Confederate Veterans were not happy that I hung their beloved flag on a 13-foot gallows, and so they protested my work, as they had done a few years earlier at my Gettysburg show. This time, the SCV stepped up its game and came armed with Chapter 256.051 of Florida Law, which states: If we, as a state and as a nation, want to move forward together in a spirit of healing, community, and respect, we must confront and honor the symbols, the laws and monuments that made possible a culture of segregation. Racism and white supremacy. Of course, the owner claims that he hoists the flag for historical and patriotic reasons and that he is allowed under Florida law to display the flag on his property. Because the property is in a homeowners` association, a Review of Chapter 720 of Florida Law is required. “It is also illegal for any person, company or entity to mutilate, degrade, defile or abuse with contempt the flag or emblem of Florida or the flag or emblem of the Confederate States by any act.” 2.
Section 256.10, F.S. allows him to raise the Confederate flag. This argument will almost certainly fail as well, since the law does not confer the right to raise such a flag in the face of private restrictions; it merely specifies the behaviour to be observed in relation to the flag. Florida`s 1961 law is undeniable, as the U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that the American flag can be vilified or even burned as a form of politically protected speech. You may not know that a law specifically dealing with the Confederate flag was passed in Florida in 1961. The foregoing law does not expressly provide that a resident of an HOA is permitted to fly a Confederate flag. The law prohibits some disrespectful treatment of such a flag and specifies that hoisting a Confederate flag for decorative or patriotic purposes does not constitute contempt or disrespect for that flag. Confederate iconography is indeed facing a change. The statue of Stonewall Jackson in Richmond, Virginia, is dilapidated, Mississippi has changed its state flag so that it no longer bears the confederate combat flag cross, the Department of Defense has banned Confederate combat flags from military installations, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation is calling for the removal of Confederate monuments unless they promote recognition of the reality of our painful past and invite reconciliation for the present and the future.
While it is unlikely that an owner of a private apartment community would establish a law of a controversial figure in his or her front yard, it is possible (and actually has happened) that a resident could display a flag (Confederate or otherwise) that is considered offensive by some of his neighbors or by the board of directors. Senator Lauren Book (D-Plantation) reintroduced a bill to eliminate state recognition of Confederate holidays and repeal provisions punishing the destruction or damage of the Confederate flag. “As a state, we must emphasize diversity and undermine tributes to the Confederacy that supported the institution of slavery,” said Senator Book. With the hatred and division we see today, it is more important than ever to condemn racism and affirm that we are indeed “a nation, indivisible, with freedom and justice for all – not just for some.” Florida law currently recognizes Confederate Memorial Day (April 26) as a state-sanctioned holiday, as well as the birthdays of Confederate President Jefferson Davis (June 3) and Confederate General Robert E. Lee (January 19). Florida is one of five states that have made Confederate Memorial Day a holiday. Senator Book introduced a national bill to abolish the Confederate vacation for the first time in 2017 following the deadly rally in Charlottesville and the encouraged actions of white supremacists, neo-Nazis and the KKK. He archived it after the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, in which Confederate flags were carried and carried by insurgents. In Florida, lawmakers have deemed it appropriate to protect the rights of its citizens to hoist certain types of flags, regardless of contrary association restrictions.
(2) (a) Any owner may respectfully display a portable and detachable flag of the United States or an official flag of the State of Florida and a portable and detachable official flag in a respectful manner not exceeding 4 and a half feet by 6 feet representing the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard, or a POW-MIA flag; regardless of the agreements, restrictions, statutes, rules or requirements of the association.
