Democratic South Carolina Rep. Mandy Powers Norrell has so far ignored calls for her to apologize for falsely accusing military cadets of making white supremacist hand signs.
Several Army cadets and Navy midshipmen were seen making an “OK” hand sign on ESPN’s College Gameday broadcast on Dec. 14 before the Army-Navy college football game. Norrell and others immediately accused the military members of making white supremacists hand signs on national television.
“Three separate candidates making the white power symbol on television. Wonder what the culture is like for the cadet in the front? There’s no excuse and he and other minorities there shouldn’t have to deal with such a cruel and disrespectful environment,” Norrell said in a now-deleted tweet.
An investigation into the incident revealed that the cadets and midshipmen were playing the “circle game” as a joke. The game is widely played among students at West Point and the Naval Academy and is not linked to white supremacy.
“There is no evidence that [the cadets and midshipmen] hold any racist or white supremacist views or attempted to communicate such messages by using the ‘OK’ hand gesture on national television,” the report concluded.
Will South Carolina Democrat @MPowersNorrell apologize now for smearing our troops? pic.twitter.com/LNLFtDZxuL
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) December 20, 2019
Will @MPowersNorrell apologize to the brave cadets she smeared as racist this week? Totally unacceptable behavior from an elected official. pic.twitter.com/vdbdRrpV4J
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) December 21, 2019
