COD removed OK sign from their game since it is 'linked to White Supremacy'

Infinity Ward has without any prior notification removed the OK sign from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Warzone. The developer Infinity Ward has not come ahead with a public statement about the same yet but it is expected that the sign in the game has been removed as it has a status of being a hate symbol. In COD: Warzone and Modern Warfare, players could assign hand gestures to their respective characters to use while being on the battlefield, but now, Infinity Ward has silently removed it. 

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COD removes OK sign

The OK gesture in the game was added back in early 2020 and was also used by many of its players as a trickshot. Players would prompt the OK sign with their left hand while firing their gun from their right hand in order to surprise their opponent. Whereas various COD gameplay streams would also carry the clips of players doing the OK sign after they win a match. 

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Image courtesy - official Anti-Defamation League (ADL) website

Back in September 2019, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) had added the OK sign in its list of hateful symbols. The symbol was reportedly found being used by many during the Black Lives Matter movement in the USA as a 'sincere expression of White Supremacy'. The symbol has experienced a resurgence in the wake of the recent racial tensions in the states. Whereas Infinity Ward has itself come forward and shown vocal support for the Black Lives Matter movement, it is not surprising for them to remove any perceived hate symbol from their game altogether without any prior explanation. 

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Infinity Ward has also come forward and announced that they will be banning users with racist and hate-oriented names. The company has promised that they will be adding resources to monitor hateful and racist content and adding additional reporting systems to increase the number of hourly bans for racist commentary. On the other hand, they have also reportedly started evaluating in-game changes to make it easier for players to report offenders. A new system of increasing permanent bans to root out repeat offenders from the game altogether. 

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