“Racists never miss an opportunity”: George Santos white power symbol controversy explained amid online backlash

Congressman-elect George Santos came under fire once again after appearing to display a white power symbol in the House Chambers while casting his 10th vote to elect Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker on Thursday.

Several images and C-span footage from the House showed the politician unfolding his arms to reveal a sideways “OK gesture” on his left hand. Santos was previously seen standing in the chamber aisle with folded arms and a smirk on his face.

When the clerk called his name during the vote, the Rep.-elect raised his right hand to reveal the gesture on his other hand before saying McCarthy’s name and quickly turning around to walk towards the back of the room.

The sideways “ok” sign has long been associated with white supremacists and has been dubbed a symbol of white power by the Anti-Defamation League.

As Santos’ photos and video clips surfaced online, Harvard Law School’s Cyberlaw Clinic instructor Alejandra Caraballo took to Twitter to point out his use of the gesture.

She referred to George Santos as “the guy who lied about everything” and alleged that he was a white supremacist who “flashed a white power hand symbol on the house floor”:

Several social media users have also dubbed the Congressman-elect as “racist” in the wake of the incident:

George Santos has continued to keep a low profile ever since the revelation of his fake CV controversy.

The politician landed in hot waters last month after it was revealed that he lied about the key information mentioned in his resume, including his education, financial background, assets, professional history and heritage, among other things.

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A look into the controversial white power symbol

The “ok” hand symbol, commonly known as a gesture to signify well-being, has also been defined as a symbol of hate depending on the context.

According to The New York Post, white supremacists started using the gesture in 2017 and it was later added to the Anti-Defamation League’s “Hate on Display” database in 2019. The database included 36 symbols, including the “ok” hand gesture.

The organization noted that the index finger-to-thumb sign, especially when used sideways, was associated with white supremacy and the far right.

Oren Segal, the director of the ADL's Center on Extremism, told NPR at the time that the “ok” sign has been used in memes and images promoting hate for several years on online message boards such as 4chan and 8chan:

“Context is always key. More people than not will use the OK symbol as just ‘OK.’ But in those cases where there's more underlining meaning, I think it's important for people to understand that it could be used, and is being used, for hate as well.”

As per Know Your Meme, in 2017 4chan users first launched a prank campaign and decided to flood social media with content linking the “ok” hand sign to the white power movement.

The gesture reportedly gained notoriety as a hate symbol after New Zealand mass shooter and white supremacist Brenton Tarrant flashed the sign in court. According to the Anti-Defamation League, the three fingers and circle made by the index finger and thumb represents “W” and “P,” which stands for “white power.”

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Netizens reacts to George Santos making white power symbol in House Chambers

Netizens slammed George Santos for making white power symbol in the House (Image via Getty Images)

George Santos has continued to make news ever since he admitted to lying about his education, professional history, and financial assets on his resume. The Congressman-elect also came under scrutiny for confusing remarks surrounding his heritage.

Although he identified as a “proud American Jew” in his campaign letter, Santos later said he was raised a Catholic and not a practicing Jew. However, he maintains that he has always identified as Jewish and has often joked with friends about being “Jew-ish.”

More recently, George Santos landed in the middle of another controversy after making a white power symbol with his hands in the House Chambers while voting for Kevin McCarthy for House Speaker.

In the wake of the incident, several social media users took to Twitter to react to Santos’ gesture:

As reactions continue to pour in online, it remains to be seen if George Santos will address the white power controversy in the days to come and explain his reasoning behind using the symbol.