Video captured at a protest in Salem, Oregon over the weekend shows an officer interacting with anti-Black Lives Matters protesters, who were identified as members of the Proud Boys group.
A clip shared on social media on Saturday appears to show an officer flashing what many said was a "white power" hand signal at one of the protesters. The protester then touches the officer's shoulder in as friendly gesture.
The Salem Police Department responded on Twitter by noting that the officer was a member of the Oregon State Police.
Others reacted by calling on the officer to be named and fired. The Oregon State Police had not responded to the incident at the time of publication.
Watch the video and read some of the reactions below.
@ORStatePolice Flashing a "White Power" Sign at a Proud Boy and hugging him, during a Black Lives Matter event. #SalemOregon #SalemOR #Oregon #ReclaimThe4th pic.twitter.com/D7EGxNKSS2
— Nat (@ToshiiLynn) July 5, 2020
The officer in the video clip is not a Salem Police officer. The uniform displays an OSP badge and the baseball cap has the agency name.
— Salem Police Dept. (@SalemPoliceDept) July 5, 2020
Who is that cop? He needs to be named.
— Cara G (@Cara1O1) July 5, 2020
Yup white power symbol from a cop...and you wonder why there’s a problem.
— ℂ (@Chico_Maki) July 5, 2020
Please don't tell me this is what I think it is ♂️ pic.twitter.com/caumGqVxw1
— EnigMajicc (@EnigMajicc) July 5, 2020
It’s not just an interaction—the cop flashes the white power hand sign at a proud boy member and gets a clap on the back in solidarity. This cop needs to be identified and investigated now. @OregonGovBrown
— DianaW (@DianaW99) July 5, 2020
Notice how he actually touches two different LEOs and they do nothing. If a protester or a person of color did that, they'd be on the ground in cuffs.
There's more than one bad cop.— Rich Stromberg (@richstromberg) July 5, 2020
Yep. The “Proud Boys” are 100% a terrorist group.
— Robin #RemoveTrumpNow (@Bryan09972165) July 5, 2020
