Dec 15, 2019

Officials investigating alleged "white power" hand signs at Army-Navy game

Axios

Stadium view of storm clouds during the Army-Navy game, Dec. 14. Photo: Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Service-academy officials are trying to determine the motives of students at the Army-Navy game who flashed hand signs on ESPN that are associated with "white power," the Wall Street Journal reports.

The big picture: Both West Point cadets and Annapolis midshipmen flashed the "OK" hand sign, which is also used for what's known as the "circle game," while ESPN was filming the student section. The sign took on another meaning around 2017 when it was co-opted by online trolls and later white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

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Fadel Allassan

West Point: Army-Navy attendees were playing a game, not making white power sign

Army prepares to snap the ball against Navy during the Army-Navy game in Dec. 2018. Photo: Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

An internal investigation has determined that two West Point cadets and a Naval Academy midshipman who displayed hand gestures in the stands on ESPN's pre-game coverage of the Army-Navy football game on Dec. 14 were playing a known game and did not have racist intentions, West Point Public Affairs announced on Friday.

Details: The “OK” hand gesture is the same as a symbol used by white supremacists to "signal their presence to the like-minded, as well as to identify potentially sympathetic recruits among young trolling artists flashing it," according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. The sign took on the new meaning around 2017 when it was co-opted by online trolls and later white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

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The state of play: Only LSU has a Heisman Trophy winner leading one of the most dangerous offenses in college football history. And only Clemson has the defensive firepower and championship game experience necessary to stop it.

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Trump touts at Army-Navy game pro sports policy for military athletes

President Trump speaks in the Navy locker room before Saturday's Army vs. Navy football game in Philadelphia, Dec. 14. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

President Trump and Defense Secretary Mark Esper touted during an appearance at an Army-Navy football game Saturday a new administration policy that makes it easier for military academy athletes to go pro.

Go deeperArrowDec 15, 2019