TRAVERSE CITY - The Traverse City police chief says the department will launch an internal investigation after a longtime officer was seen revving the engine of his pickup truck and flying a Confederate flag, as he drove past a black family participating in a rally at a city park.

Marshall Collins Jr. and his relatives were at Friday's gathering where people were protesting Donald Trump's election when he said the truck's driver came by once, then sped back past where his family was standing.

"As he came back by, I kind of stood out and I held up my fist very quietly. For me, that's a sign of solidarity and black pride. So that's what I did," said Collins, a father of two and an instructional services health coordinator for the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District.

He said the officer made a show of grabbing a beer and joining a small pro-Trump group in a parking area. That's when Collins said he decided to address the issue.

Collins said he asked the truck's driver - whom he did not know was an off-duty police officer - why he would bring the Confederate flag to a community gathering. "I said, 'Do you know what this represents? Do you understand the hatred?'"

"He said, 'You don't know the history of it ...That flag didn't do anything to you.'"

Many believe the Confederate flag is a blatant symbol of racism, oppression and hatred. Supporters believe it denotes Southern pride.

Collins said he told the truck's driver the fear that flag instills in people - something he hoped his two boys would never have to experience. Collins said the driver shrugged it off, saying he didn't have kids.

Collins said the driver posed for pictures in front of the flag before leaving.

It wasn't until later Collins learned the man in the truck was a police officer.

A photo of the truck was shared on social media. Police Chief Jeff O'Brien told the Traverse City Record-Eagle on Saturday, Nov. 12 that the driver was Officer Michael Peters, and that the department will begin an investigation on Monday.

"That's not what the Traverse City Police Department represents," O'Brien told The Record-Eagle. "We are to provide protection for everybody. The Confederate flag is not something we consider an oath of office. We take an oath of office to the Constitution, not the Confederacy. I personally feel that flag stands for hate and hatred."

Collins said he's experienced racism before in his 10 years of living in Traverse City. But the fact it was a police officer flying the flag at a public rally surprised him - and made it worse.

"I don't want that kind of person pulling me over," Collins said, adding that speaking about the incident has made him more cautious in public. He doesn't want to be targeted for speaking up. "I had to go to Northport today and I'm literally driving 53 miles an hour."

He said the incident led to a tough discussion with his children. He had to explain to them the history of the flag, and why he needed to speak up when confronted with it.

Standing up against intimidation is something more people need to feel comfortable doing, no matter what your politics are, Collins said.

"We need to stop being afraid. We need to address the issue," he said.

"I don't care if you're a Republican or a Democrat. If you can't stand up when people are being treated wrongly, then this nation will never come together."