US

Kathy Griffin Gets Dunked On For Suggesting Covington Catholic Basketball Players Used ‘Nazi’ Hand Gesture

(LEFT: A student from Covington Catholic High School stands in front of Native American Vietnam veteran Nathan Phillips in Washington, U.S., in this still image from a January 18, 2019 video by Kaya Taitano. Kaya Taitano/Social Media/via REUTERS RIGHT: Phillip Faraone/Getty Images)

Mike Brest Reporter
Font Size:

Comedienne Kathy Griffin is receiving backlash Tuesday after posting a photo of the Covington Catholic basketball team alleging that they were displaying a white supremacy sign despite the gesture having a specific meaning in basketball.

Covington Catholic made national headlines over the weekend when a video went viral of MAGA hat-wearing students being confronted by a Native American man. While many assigned blame to the students, it later became clear, when more video surfaced, that they did not initiate the debacle.

The tweet, which was deleted shortly after it was posted, showed the players on the team’s bench celebrating and using their hands to make the “OK” sign. The hand signal in basketball is often used after a player hits a 3-point shot. (RELATED: Nathan Phillips Suggests Expelling Covington Catholic Kids)

It had the caption, “Covington’s finest throwing up the new nazi sign.”


Many people took the opportunity to post photos of NBA stars like Golden State Warriors’ Steph Curry and Los Angeles Lakers LeBron James making the same gesture to prove their point. New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has also made that hand sign before a game, as Siraj Hashmi pointed out on Twitter.


The comedian previously called for the students’ information to be released publicly.

“I want NAMES,” Griffin tweeted Sunday morning. “Shame them. If you think these fuckers wouldn’t dox you in a heartbeat, think again.”

She was not suspended from Twitter despite many calling for her to be for violating the site’s community rules.

Follow Mike on Twitter