According to the United States Flag Code, the American flag should not be flown upside down, except as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property. This means that flying the flag upside down is seen as a symbol of a nation in distress. It is a way to alert others of the threat at the time. However, there are no federal punishments or enforcement for people who dont follow the code. Flying the flag upside down has recently become much more popular as a form of peaceful protest that shows that the flyer of the flag believes there is some severe crisis within the country. It is a symbolic response to political distress, a display of dissent against a standing government or disapproval of a countrys foreign policy.