NSW Police have denied that an officer who flashed a hand gesture at protesters in Sydney was making a white power symbol, after footage of the incident went viral on Twitter overnight.
Per reports in The Guardian, the incident occurred shortly after a group of Black Lives Matter protesters were moved on from Hyde Park and were making their way towards Town Hall.
Protester Jen Atherton filmed the video, in which a group of officers is seen crossing the street, and one appears to make a hand gesture associated with the white supremacy movement.
Atherton told The Guardian that the incident was “just really shocking.”
NSW Police said in a statement obtained by Pedestrian.TV:
“The officer has been spoken to and did not intentionally make a gesture that could be deemed offensive. Further, the officer indicated he was responding to a group of women about the night being ‘okay’ and used a hand symbol as he was wearing a face mask.”
“He did not know the gesture had any other meaning. The NSW Police Force works closely to foster a strong and cohesive partnership with Aboriginal communities and other groups and does not appreciate irresponsible inflammatory commentary in this space.”
There were approximately 600 police officers in Sydney’s CBD overnight, as a group of around 300 protested indigenous deaths in custody.
A 24-year-old woman was arrested and fined after failing to comply with a move on direction.
