# OK Symbol 👌 > OK Symbol is a thumb-and-index-finger circle hand gesture that 4chan hoaxed as a white supremacist symbol in 2017, successfully deceiving media until real extremists began using it earnestly. The OK Symbol 👌 is a hand gesture made by connecting the thumb and index finger into a circle while holding three fingers straight up. Long a universal sign meaning "all is well," the gesture got dragged into political controversy starting in 2016 when pro-Trump figures adopted it, and then in early 2017 when 4chan trolls launched a deliberate hoax campaign to convince the media it was a white supremacist symbol. The operation worked better than anyone expected, blurring the line between ironic trolling and genuine hate signaling until real white supremacists began using it in earnest, most notably the Christchurch mosque shooter in 2019. ## Origin The gesture's roots go back millennia. Ring gestures formed by the forefinger and thumb appear in Greek art from the fifth century BCE as expressions of love[5]. The Roman rhetorician Quintilian used a similar gesture during speeches as a mark of approval[6]. In Buddhist and Hindu traditions, the shape symbolized inner perfection[5]. The modern "OK" meaning coalesced in America around 1839, when a humor piece in the Boston Morning Post used "o.k." as a comically misspelled abbreviation for "all correct"[6]. President Martin Van Buren's 1840 reelection campaign adopted both the phrase and gesture, playing on his nickname "Old Kinderhook"[5]. Supporters formed the O.K. Democratic Club and used the hand sign as their symbol. The meme-era controversy started on April 9, 2015, when conservative Viner Pizza Party Ben posted a video making the OK gesture with the description "White guys be like"[4]. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Pizza Party Ben and Milo Yiannopoulos began flashing the sign together at Trump events. After Trump's election night victory in November 2016, Yiannopoulos posted a photo making the gesture at the celebration party[4]. In February 2017, anonymous users on 4chan's /pol/ board launched what they called "Operation O-KKK"[10]. The plan was straightforward: "flood Twitter and other social media websites" with posts claiming the OK hand sign was a white supremacist signal[4]. They created a graphic showing how the three upturned fingers could represent a "W" and the thumb-forefinger circle a "P" for "White Power"[8]. The original poster wrote: "Leftists have dug so deep down into their lunacy, we must force them to dig more, until the rest of society ain't going anywhere near that s***"[8]. - **Platform:** 4chan /pol/ (hoax campaign), Twitter (spread) - **Creator:** Anonymous 4chan /pol/ users (Operation O-KKK hoax), Pizza Party Ben (early Trump-adjacent usage) - **Date:** 2017 (as meme/controversy; gesture itself is ancient) ## Overview The OK hand gesture is one of the oldest and most widely recognized signals in human communication. Thumb meets index finger in a circle, three fingers point up, and the meaning across most of the English-speaking world is simple: everything's fine[5]. Scuba divers use it underwater to signal safety. Presidents flash it during speeches. Kids use it in the Circle Game to punch each other on the arm. But starting around 2016-2017, the gesture picked up a second, contested meaning in internet culture. Pro-Trump media figures began posing with it in photos, some connecting it to the Smug Pepe meme[4]. Then 4chan's /pol/ board deliberately weaponized the ambiguity by launching a coordinated troll campaign to convince journalists the gesture secretly meant "white power." The campaign succeeded spectacularly, creating a feedback loop where media outrage validated the trolls, which encouraged more people to flash the sign ironically, which attracted actual white supremacists who adopted it sincerely[10]. ## How It Spread The operation gained traction fast. On February 13, 2017, Gateway Pundit founder Jim Hoft tweeted a photo of himself and White House correspondent Lucian Wintrich standing behind the White House briefing room lectern while making the gesture[2]. Media Matters immediately published an article calling it a "racist Pepe hand signal," and their official Twitter account amplified the accusation[4]. Multiple Twitter users mocked Media Matters for the reaction. On February 21, 2017, DailyKos shared a photograph of White House advisor Stephen Miller, claiming his hand position showed a deliberate white power signal. Snopes investigated and found the claim not credible. ADL senior researcher Mark Pitcavage told Snopes that Miller "seems merely to be adjusting his suit and tie" and that "there is no reason why Miller would even know of such an obscure symbol"[3]. On March 7, 2017, Mediaite published a piece asking whether a 10-year-old student visiting the White House was making "the Pepe symbol" after being photographed flashing the OK sign near President Trump[16]. The biggest early flashpoint came on April 28, 2017, when Fusion reporter Emma Roller retweeted a photo of Cassandra Fairbanks and Mike Cernovich posing with the gesture in the White House press room, captioning it "Just two people doing a white power hand gesture in the White House"[7]. The tweet picked up over 7,000 likes and 6,700 retweets within 72 hours. Roller then posted the 4chan-created "Operation O-KKK" graphic as evidence[4]. Journalist Tim Pool retweeted Roller with the comment "Journalism is dead," which got over 9,000 likes[4]. The Independent ran a story accusing the pair of making "white supremacist hand signs," citing an ADL database entry[7]. The Independent later updated the article to note that the ADL's two-handed "WP" gesture was different from the common one-handed OK sign[7]. BuzzFeed took a more measured approach, publishing "The Trump Internet Keeps Making Fake Hate Symbols, And People Keep Falling For It," placing the controversy in the context of 4chan's deliberate trolling operations[10]. Cernovich told the Observer the gesture started as a riff on Jay Z and BeyoncĂ©'s hand signals, which some conspiracy theorists had linked to the Illuminati. "He and BeyoncĂ© used to do it, and some said it was an Illuminati symbol. We started doing it as a joke, and it took on a life of its own"[11]. ## How to Use The OK Symbol meme typically operates in a few modes: **Sincere usage:** People still use the 👌 emoji and hand gesture to mean "okay," "perfect," or "nice" in everyday communication. This is by far the most common usage worldwide. **The Circle Game:** Holding the OK sign below the waist to trick someone into looking at it. If they look, you get to punch them. This playground game predates the controversy entirely. **Ironic/trolling usage:** Flashing the sign in photos or online to bait reactions from people who believe it's a hate symbol. The humor, such as it is, comes from the overreaction. **Dog-whistle usage:** Some white nationalists adopted the gesture as a semi-plausible signal of their ideology, relying on the ambiguity to maintain deniability. The key factor in interpreting any instance is context: who's using it, where, and what else is happening in the frame. ## Cultural Impact The OK Symbol controversy became a case study in how internet trolling campaigns can reshape the meaning of everyday gestures. The 4chan operation demonstrated that symbols don't need organic adoption to gain real-world consequences. By the time the ADL added the gesture to its hate symbol database in 2019[13], the original "hoax" had produced genuine casualties: a Coast Guard member lost his assignment[8], a Cubs fan got banned from Wrigley Field indefinitely[13], and a mass murderer used the gesture as a calling card in court[1]. The controversy also highlighted a genuine media dilemma. As BuzzFeed noted, the pro-Trump internet's troll operations deliberately targeted the gap between journalistic responsibility (reporting on potential hate symbols) and credulity (falling for obvious bait)[10]. Outlets that reported the gesture as definitively racist looked foolish when the 4chan origins surfaced. Outlets that dismissed it as purely a joke looked naive after Christchurch. The Observer published a piece by 4chan moderator Jay Irwin arguing that media meltdowns with "no basis in reality" were the trolls' intended payoff[11]. But the premise that the meltdowns had no real-world consequences became harder to defend as actual extremists began adopting the sign. ## Fun Facts - The "OK" expression may trace back to an 1839 Boston newspaper joke about misspelled acronyms, where "o.k." stood for "oll korrect"[5]. - President Martin Van Buren's supporters formed the O.K. Democratic Club in 1840, making the OK gesture possibly the first political hand signal in American history[6]. - In Japan, the same gesture means "money" rather than "OK," with the circle representing a coin[5]. - 4chan tried to follow up the OK hoax by making the peace sign the next fake hate symbol[10]. - The Cubs fan banned from Wrigley Field was not even the season ticket holder for that seat. He'd bought the ticket through StubHub, and the team used mobile ticketing records to identify him[13]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is the OK Symbol meme? The OK Symbol meme refers to the controversy surrounding the common hand gesture (thumb and index finger forming a circle, three fingers extended) after it was co-opted by internet trolls and some far-right figures starting in 2017. While the gesture normally means "all is well," a 4chan campaign called Operation O-KKK deliberately tried to trick the media into reporting it as a white supremacist signal[4]. ### Where did the OK Symbol controversy come from? The controversy originated on 4chan's /pol/ board in February 2017, when anonymous users launched Operation O-KKK to "flood Twitter and other social media websites" with claims that the OK hand sign was a white power symbol[10]. Pro-Trump media figures had already been using the gesture in photos since 2015[4]. ### What does the OK Symbol mean? It depends entirely on context. For billions of people worldwide, it means "okay" or "good." For scuba divers, it signals safety[5]. In Japan, it means money[6]. In the post-2017 internet, it can also function as a trolling gesture or, in some cases, an actual far-right signal. The ADL added it to its hate symbols database in 2019 while cautioning that context determines meaning[13]. ### How do you use the OK Symbol? Form a circle by touching your thumb and index finger together while holding your other three fingers extended. In meme context, the gesture is typically flashed in photos, posted as the 👌 emoji in comments, or used in the Circle Game (held below the waist to trick someone into looking)[4]. ### Is the OK Symbol still controversial? The peak of the controversy ran from 2017 to 2019, with the Christchurch attack marking the most serious flashpoint[1]. The ADL's 2019 addition of the gesture to its hate symbol database settled the institutional debate while acknowledging the gesture's overwhelming innocent usage[13]. ### Who started Operation O-KKK? Anonymous users on 4chan's /pol/ board launched the campaign in February 2017. The original poster created a graphic showing how the OK sign could be read as the letters "WP" (White Power) and encouraged flooding social media with the claim[8]. ### Did the OK sign controversy affect real people's lives? Yes. A U.S. Coast Guard member was removed from Hurricane Florence response duty in September 2018 after appearing to flash the gesture on live television[8]. A Cubs fan was banned indefinitely from Wrigley Field in May 2019 for making the sign behind reporter Doug Glanville[13]. ### What happened with the Christchurch shooter and the OK sign? Brenton Tarrant, accused of killing 50 people in two New Zealand mosques in March 2019, flashed an inverted OK sign during his first court appearance while looking directly at the assembled media[1]. The gesture aligned with his manifesto's references to white supremacist ideology[14]. ### Did the ADL classify the OK sign as a hate symbol? The ADL added the gesture to its hate symbols database in September 2019, while explicitly warning that "caution must be used in evaluating instances of this symbol's use." The organization recognized that overwhelming majority of OK sign usage is innocent[13]. ### What was the media's role in the OK Symbol controversy? Media outlets played directly into 4chan's strategy. When Fusion reporter Emma Roller tweeted about a "white power hand gesture in the White House" in April 2017, she cited the 4chan-created graphic as evidence[4]. The Independent ran a story accusing journalists of white supremacist signaling based on the gesture[7]. BuzzFeed offered more nuanced coverage, placing the controversy in the context of deliberate trolling campaigns[10]. ### Is the Circle Game the same as the white power sign? No. The Circle Game is a prank where someone holds the OK sign below their waist, and if you look at it, they get to punch you[4]. The Cubs fan who was banned from Wrigley Field tried this defense, but the team's president said the context of making the gesture behind a Black reporter on camera made it unconvincing[13]. ## References 1. [New Zealand mosque attack suspect flashes “white power” sign in court.]() 2. [A Dangerous Troll Is Now Reporting From The White House | Media Matters for America]() 3. [Did Stephen Miller Throw a White Power Sign? | Snopes.com]() 4. [OK Symbol 👌 - Know Your Meme]() 5. [OK gesture]() 6. [OK gesture - Wikipedia]() 7. [Two members of alt-right accused of making white supremacist hand signs in White House after receiving press passes | The Independent | The Independent]() 8. [Twitter Mob Gets U.S. Coast Guard Member Removed for Making 'Offensive' 'OK' Sign – PJ Media]() 9. [You might be a racist if you signal you’re O.K. – Blaska Policy Werkes]() 10. [A Dangerous Troll Is Now Reporting From The White House | Media Matters for America]() 11. [The Trump Internet Keeps Making Fake Hate Symbols, And People Keep Falling For It]() 12. [Jay Z and BeyoncĂ© Inspired ‘White Power’ Symbol, Claims Alt-Right Figure | | Observer]() 13. [Just what kind of hand gesture is in Kanye’s latest tweet? – ThinkProgress]() 14. [Cubs ban fan who made alleged racist hand gesture: ‘He will not be permitted on the grounds of Wrigley Field indefinitely’ – Chicago Tribune]() 15. [New Zealand Mosque Shooting Suspect Brenton Tarrant Flashes White Power SIgn in Court]() 16. [KANYE WEST on Twitter: "we got love
 "]() 17. [NZ mosque attacks suspect flashes ‘white power’ sign in court | News | Al Jazeera]() 18. [Is That Cute Kid Trump Met at the White House Today Making the Pepe Symbol?]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/ok-symbol Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library