Vietnam vet takes down Confederate flag flying over NJ building

WAYNE — A Vietnam veteran says it was his First Amendment right to take down a Confederate flag that was flying over a building.

The flag was seen on Tuesday morning outside of the Paris Inn, according to NorthJersey.com. The restaurant has been closed since last March and it was not clear who flew the flag.

The person responsible for taking the flag down was identified by NorthJersey.com as 67-year-old township resident Stewart Resmer, a Marine veteran who served in the Vietnam War.

"The battle flag of the Confederacy is not going to fly around here if I can do anything about it," the report quoted him as saying. "I won't stand for it."

Resmer was quoted by Wayne Patch that taking down the flag "was my First Amendment right, countering their First Amendment right." He said he replaced the Confederate flag with an American flag and threw the other one away.

"Being a Vietnam veteran is the hardest thing I've done in my life," Resmer told the Patch. "I'm morally bound to stand up for something like this."