A video taken at a transgender pride march in San Francisco shows participants in the march burning an American flag. The video was recorded by Twitter user "Mx Emily A Rose," who later clarified that she was not an active participant in the burning but simply recorded the act.
#TransMarch burning the flag as protest. pic.twitter.com/ueQQoogP1K
— mx emily a rose (@nexxylove) June 25, 2016
#TransMarch flag burning footage pic.twitter.com/IHRCwZftFq
— mx emily a rose (@nexxylove) June 25, 2016
While burning the American flag is legal, it's not exactly the best optics for a group seeking increased acceptance into society. It does, however, beg the question as to where these activists would rather live. Transgender people in the U.S. have many more rights here than they do in many other countries, and are freely able to march and assemble as they did in San Francisco without fear of being put into jail for doing so. Not all LGBT people can say that. The U.S. is one of approximately 20 countries where a person is free to marry someone else regardless of gender identity. Conversely, homosexuality is punishable by death in 10 countries and is illegal in 73.