Q-Anon Explained

If you have heard of Q-Anon but don’t understand what, or who, Q-Anon is, you aren’t alone. Q-Anon has quickly transformed from an underground conspiracy into a movement that has taken America by storm.

At its most basic, Q-Anon followers believe that the world is run by a cabal of elite pedophiles. As unbelievable as it may seem, “Q” whoever he, she or they may be, was able to capture the attention of internet users of the platform 4-chan, an anonymous sharing platform ironically notorious for pedophile communities, by claiming to be a high ranking military official with access to state secrets. These state secrets, Q claimed, divulged that Donald Trump, the then-president, was engaged in an effort to take down these nefarious elites and restore America to righteousness.

Q posted messages in coded speech christened “Q-drops” by Q- Anon followers. YouTube channels cropped up decoding and discussing the drops, resulting in millions of views and thousands of new Q followers. While Q-Anon content has since been banned from YouTube and many other large social media platforms, the damage was done. Q-Anon had migrated from the dark web to the mainstream.

One of the most powerful tools of recruitment used by Q-Anon followers is the hashtag #savethechildren (not affiliated with the non-profit). It proved an effective way to circumvent the bans on Q-Anon related tags on social media.

The belief that elites of the so-called deep state were trafficking children did not originate with Q-Anon. That element of the conspiracy is generally credited to ‘Pizzagate,’ the conspiracy theory that claimed Hillary Clinton's leaked emails were full of coded language that alluded to pedophilia and child trafficking. Belief in the conspiracy became so strong that in 2016 a man stormed into a D.C pizza restaurant with a rifle to stop what he believed was a child trafficking ring in the basement. Unsurprisingly no such thing existed. The restaurant didn’t even have a basement.

Q-Anon borrows from Pizzagate but has become far more influential. The Wayfair conspiracy that gained traction during the summer of 2020 was eerily similar to the narrative of Pizzagate. Q-Anon supporters claimed that Wayfair, the homeware company, was selling missing children on their site through listings of extraordinarily highly-priced furniture. The conspiracy gained so much traction and media attention Wayfair was forced to release a statement insisting they did not sell children.

Q-Anon is no longer an underground conspiracy of the few. The presidential election of 2020 saw the election of the first candidates who ran on Q-Anon platforms, most notably congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. She and other pro Q congress members have been the most vocal supporters of the ‘stolen election’ narrative pushed by the Trump campaign.

Donald Trump did nothing and continues to do nothing to dissuade these congress members or the vast number of people who now believe in Q. When asked to denounce Q-Anon he feigned ignorance, merely saying that all he knew was that they denounced pedophilia- something which he supported.

Do not be fooled. Donald Trump is well aware of Q-Anon. Many of the insurrectionists on January 6th supported Q and waved Q-Anon flags. Roxanne Boyland, one of the women who died in the capital that day, had been a Q-Anon follower radicalized in a short six months. If he denounced the movement Trump would lose some of his most loyal and vocal supporters. While it is in America’s interest for him to denounce Q-Anon, it is not in his.

It no longer matters who Q is or if Q was ever real. The conspiracy has outgrown its digital roots and is making dangerous forays into the Republican party.

Unless drastic action is taken, Q-Anon is here to stay.