He asked why others were not considered racist for calling him a racist, saying that he was being persecuted as a white man who others perceive is making comments about black people.

Morris said he did not violate the city’s social media policy by making the post. He said because he did not post while on duty, from a government device, and did not mention the city of Harrisburg directly, he was in the clear.

“It’s not a violation of their social media policy,” he said.

Both Mayor John McPeek and Beth Montfort, the city’s public health and safety commissioner, said there was no plan of disciplinary action to be taken against Morris for the post that prompted public outcry during last week’s City Council meeting.

When asked what his immediate reaction to the post was, McPeek said he knew it needed to come down and asked that it be taken offline. He said he did not initially read it as racist.

“When I first saw it, no I did not (see it as racist), because it never mentioned anything in particular … but I could see where people could probably think it was something,” McPeek said about perceived racial commentary made by the post. He said that he knew it could be inflammatory, though, and said that was the reason he wanted it removed.