QAnon

QAnon (/ˌkjuːəˈnɒn/) is a disproven far-right conspiracy theory believing that a cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles is running a global child sex-trafficking ring and are planning against former US president Donald Trump, who is fighting the cabal.^[1]

A QAnon flag in Richmond, Virginia saying "Where We Go One We Go All"

A U.S. soldier wearing a "Q" patch which lead to many conservatives believing it to be a pedophile-Satan worshiping ring.

QAnon also believes that Trump is planning a day known as the "Storm", when thousands of members of the cabal will be arrested.^[2] No part of the conspiracy claim is based in fact.^[3][4][5][6]

QAnon's supporters have accused many liberal Hollywood actors, Democratic politicians, and high-ranking government officials of being members of the cabal.^[7]

Former followers of the group have criticized it for vandalism of stores and general antisocial behavior.

Members of the movement actively took part in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, during which they supported Donald Trump's campaign.^[8][9] After Joe Biden won, they were involved in efforts to overturn the results of the election. Many of the QAnon followers attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, which caused many media websites to track down and block QAnon information and members from spreading.^[10][11]

References

1. Roose, Kevin (August 28, 2020). "What Is QAnon, the Viral Pro-Trump Conspiracy Theory?". The New York Times. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
2. Spring, Marianna; Wendling, Mike (2020-09-03). "The link between Covid-19 myths and QAnon". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-09-03.
3. Liptak, Kevin. "Trump embraces QAnon conspiracy because 'they like me'". CNN. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
4. "Why President Trump's refusal to refute QAnon conspiracy theorists matters". CBS News. August 20, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
5. Colvin, Jill (August 14, 2020). "Trump dodges question on QAnon conspiracy theory". Associated Press. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
6. O'Reilly, Andrew (August 19, 2020). "Trump addresses QAnon conspiracy theory for the first time: 'I heard that these are people that love our country'". Fox News.
7. Sommer, Will (July 7, 2018). "What Is QAnon? The Craziest Theory of the Trump Era, Explained". The Daily Beast. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
8. Tollefson, Jeff (4 February 2021). "Tracking QAnon: how Trump turned conspiracy-theory research upside down" (PDF). Nature. Vol. 590. Nature Research. pp. 192–193. doi:10.1038/d41586-021-00257-y. ISSN 1476-4687. LCCN 12037118. PMID 33542489. S2CID 231818589. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
9. Thomas, Elise (February 17, 2020). "Qanon Deploys 'Information Warfare' to Influence the 2020 Election". Wired. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
10. "Twitter blocks 70,000 QAnon accounts after US Capitol riot". Associated Press. January 12, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
11. Roose, Kevin (January 17, 2021). "A QAnon 'Digital Soldier' Marches On, Undeterred by Theory's Unraveling". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-01-17. Retrieved April 19, 2021.