The “Qonvention” Was Exorbitant and Depraved
Steven Monacelli
June 7, 2021
Iusually prefer not to spend my time seeking entry to a conference for a Christofascist conspiracy-obsessed cult that is actively promoting a military coup. That is not the kind of thing that I generally enjoy. But that’s exactly what I found myself doing when the QAnon-centric “For God & Country Patriot Roundup” convention came to Dallas, Texas, the city I call home.
For a time, it seemed like the convention wasn’t going to happen at all. The original venue had backed out after a series of critical reports in a local paper. One of those articles detailed the organizers’ denial that the convention was affiliated with QAnon, featuring quotes from one “QAnon John.” Nevertheless, John and his wife, “QueenAnon Amy,” forged ahead undaunted. Local elected officials put up no resistance to the conclave, perhaps in part due to a previous legal battle that resulted in a six-figure settlement for cancelling a pornography festival in 2016. Local activists mulled protesting the event, and one choir group chose to do just that. But aside from counter-demonstration, there was little that concerned Dallasites could do to prevent an extremist conspiratorial movement from descending upon their city.
So, I decided to report on the event from the inside. Initially I pursued the traditional route: I pitched a publication, requested a press pass, and planned to make myself known as a member of the press. But within an hour of submitting my request, I received a rejection. “We’re all full,” the media coordinator wrote. Of course, that wasn’t the truth. General admission tickets were still on sale for $500 the day before the event started. Other journalists had also been denied access. The reasons given varied, but were really besides the point—the organizers wouldn’t grant entry to any reporter who might be even slightly unsympathetic. Instead, they invited in far-right rags like The Epoch Times and Gateway Pundit. Going in undercover was the only option left.
Over the course of the next three days, a veritable circus of speakers took the stage to promote a range of depraved and deranged theories. They often invoked God and Christianity in the process. Frayed and disparate narratives were woven together to form a nearly incomprehensible Quilt of beliefs, often deeply religious in tone. It is difficult to exaggerate the parallels between QAnon and other common tenets of historically Christofascist tendencies and organizations. Luciferian pedophile cabals, antisemitic blood libel, government conspiracies, a global Communist government, and a dozen other deeply warped notions were accompanied by thinly veiled calls for God-Loving Patriots to support a military coup in the service of instating some sort of theocratic fascist regime. Few things would please them more than to hail the return of God Emperor Trump.
These are not people that employ a great deal of subtlety or subtext, and one need not read between the lines to understand the implications. Consider the lionization of Trump, Flynn, and Trump lawyer Sidney Powell as modern Founding Fathers who are fighting to reclaim the Republic for “We The People” against an Illuminati cabal. Consider that, when asked by Pennsylvania Republican congressional candidate Andrew Meehan whether they were in Washington on January 6th, approximately one third of the attendees raised their hand. Consider that some 30 million people are estimated to subscribe to the core theories of the QAnon movement. It’s all out in the open.
https://proteanmag.com/2021/06/07/the-q ... -depraved/