What is a Roman salute? Term trends after Elon Musk’s gesture at Trump rally

WASHINGTON – A gesture made by Elon Musk while he was speaking at President Donald Trump’s Inauguration Parade Monday evening caused a stir online, with some people noting that the tech billionaire’s straight-arm movement looked like a Nazi salute. 

Musk was wrapping up his impassioned speech in support of the new president at Capital One Arena when he made the gesture. 

“I just want to say thank you for making it happen,” Musk said to the crowd, referring to Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election. 

He then slapped his hand on his chest and stuck his arm straight outward and upward with his palm facing downwards. He turned around and made a similar gesture facing the other way.

“My heart goes out to you,” Musk continued. “It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured.” 

What they’re saying:

Critics and fans alike of the Tesla CEO and world’s richest man were quick to react.

Social media users began sharing clips and screenshots of the moment, some alleging that Musk deliberately did the “Sieg Heil” salute while others claimed it was an innocuous motion that came as he cheered with the crowd.

While Musk has not explicitly said that he was not making a fascist gesture, he did post on X several hours after leaving the stage, saying the uproar online was just one of the “dirty tricks” ostensibly carried out by Democrats.

“Frankly, they need better dirty tricks,” Musk wrote. “The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired,” Musk posted on X several hours after he left the stage.” He also added a sleeping emoji at the end of the post. 

Although Musk didn’t confirm or deny the intent, some right-wing personalities praised the action. 

“Did Elon Musk just Heil Hitler at the Trump Inauguration Rally in Washington, D.C…” right-wing commentator Evan Kilgore posted on X. “This is incredible.”

“Maybe woke really is dead,” white nationalist Keith Woods posted on X.

On the other side, some Democratic N.Y. Rep. Jerry Nadler posted to X, saying, “I never imagined we would see the day when what appears to be a Heil Hitler salute would be made behind the Presidential seal. This abhorrent gesture has no place in our society.”

There was even international response. German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach chimed in.

“Such a gesture, given his already known proximity to right-wing populists in the fascist tradition, must worry every democrat,” Lauterbach said.

And Spain’s Minister of Labor and Social Economy Yolanda Díaz released a statement saying she would quit X after “the entire world witnessed Elon Musk mimicking a Nazi salute.”

But many defended Musk, saying it was accidental. The Anti-Defamation League, an antisemitism and human rights watchdog, called it an “awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm” and urged caution in jumping to conclusions.

“In this moment, all sides should give one another a bit of grace, perhaps even the benefit of the doubt, and take a breath,” the ADL continued.

Other extremism monitors and experts pointed out it was unclear what Musk was trying to convey to the crowd of Trump’s supporters by thrusting his arm out.

“I’m skeptical it was on purpose,” Jared Holt, a senior research analyst at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, which tracks online hate, told the Associated Press. “It would be an act of self-sabotage that wouldn’t really make much sense at all.”

What is a “Sieg Heil” Salute?

The backstory:

The Nazi or Hitler salute came about in the 1930s in Nazi Germany as a way to pay homage to Adolf Hitler. It consists of raising an outstretched right arm with the palm down. 

The gesture was often accompanied by chanting or shouting “Heil Hitler” or “sieg Heil.” Since World War II, neo-Nazis and other white supremacists have continued to use the salute, making it the most common white supremacist hand sign in the world. 

The gesture is banned in several European nations including Germany, Austria, Sweden and Switzerland. 

What is a Roman salute? 

The backstory:

Shortly after Musk made the gesture, the term “Roman salute” started trending online. While it appears similar to the Nazi salute associated with Adolf Hitler, the gesture has ancient roots.

According to The Roman Salute: Cinema, History, Ideology by George Mason University Professor Martin M. Winkler, the saluto Romano was previously used as a sign of respect in ancient Roman culture.

“This salute was based on an ancient Roman custom, just as the term Fascism itself is associated with the Roman fasces — the bundles of rods with an axe in their middle that were a symbol of the power of office held by higher Roman magistracies and some priests,” Martin writes. 

In the twentieth century, the salute became the most familiar symbol of fascism in Italy, Nazism in Germany, Falangism in Spain and several other right-wing and nationalist movements. 

As Hitler rose to power in Germany, the gesture became a globally-recognized symbol of the Nazi movement.