Oregon State Police says officer wasn’t making white power sign at protest

Oregon State Police said an officer who made an “OK” gesture during a Saturday protest was checking on a man who had been pushed to the ground and was not making a white power sign. 

Police said in a statement Sunday they found that the trooper identified in a video seen making the gesture “did not engage in any white supremacy behavior implicitly or explicitly” following an immediate review of the event. 

Police released video of the incident, which shows an officer making the hand gesture during an altercation at a protest. 

The “OK” hand gesture, formed by a the thumb and index finger touching while three other fingers are outstretched, was promoted, first as a hoax, in 2017 by members of the website 4chan claiming it represents the letters “wp” for “white power,” according to the Anti-Defamation League. 

Tell me again how defund the police is wrong when no one even bats an eye at a policeman in Oregon flashing a white power sign at a Proud Boy that he’s obviously chummy with.
pic.twitter.com/3hPEcyM8nI

— lisa hendricks (@MsLisaHendricks) July 5, 2020

Oregon State Police said they reviewed body camera footage of the identified trooper and body camera footage of troopers in the general vicinity. 

Police said information indicated the trooper had seen two protesters engaged in a physical altercation, including one man who was knocked to the ground. Another man was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and harassment. 

The trooper approached the man knocked to the ground and asked if he was unharmed while also “displaying the hand signal commonly associated with ‘okay’” as he was wearing a face covering and operating in a noisy environment, police said. 

“Best available evidence indicates the trooper was simply checking on the man’s status and used the universal signal to signify this inquiry, which the man gestured he was- then patted this trooper and a second trooper on their shoulders in an apparent signal of appreciation,” police said. 

In its statement, the state police said they also condemn “all racist behaviors” and do not allow white supremacist behaviors by officers and staff.