The QAnon Conspiracy Theory

Example 42: The QAnon conspiracy theory:

No section about contemporary antisemitic conspiracy theory, sadly, can be regarded as complete without including the QAnon theory, which began to emerge in the summer of 2020. QAnon is the name normally given to the conspiracy theory that top U.S. military officials recruited Donald Trump to run for president to expose and vanquish the ‘deep state’. The ‘deep state’ is supposed to be to a cabal of Satan-worshipping paedophiles who operate a child sex-trafficking ring, which ultimately kills and eats the children they abuse to extract a life-extending chemical found in youthful blood. This is in essence an updating of much older antisemitic conspiracy theories about powerful Jewish cabals, and it also links with the mediaeval blood libel canard; although it also takes in other baseless prejudices including some of the most lurid allegations against LGBTQ people. The cabal itself is said to contain a number of celebrities in different fields, including George Soros. As all the conspiracy theories we discuss, it is entirely fictitious, containing not even a grain of truth.

In 2020 rapper Ice Cube posted a QAnon-type meme of the Star of David enclosing the ‘Black Cube of Saturn’, an occult symbol indicating chaos, and linked to a cult of Satan worshippers. Clearly this was antisemitic, linking Satan-worship to the Jewish people, and could perhaps be associated with QAnon. https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/hip-hop/9400472/ice-cube-criticized-anti-semitic-images-conspiracy-theories

The absurdity of the allegations made by QAnon have not prevented it from gaining a worrying degree of traction, with recent polling (October 2020) suggesting strong support in the U.S., especially among Trump-supporting Republican voters. In the UK as many as 25% of the population, and 40% of people under 25, said that they too believe in the theory, according to one polling organisation. Facebook acted quickly to ban the promotion of the QAnon theory from their platform, but as we write it continues to gain increasing credence not just in the USA but also in other countries. It is important to note, that many people believing in QAnon and related theories are not aware of their antisemitic connections.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/aug/19/trump-qanon-praise-conspiracy-theory-believers?fbclid=IwAR3-GufDubK2bZTg1PwcAbA5HsggRG908lokxxYjL6DNO3h4uKwWe2a0JHA