Like most of us, I watched the video of George Floyd’s death with increasing horror as it went on. But I can honestly say I wasn’t shocked. I was outraged, for sure. But I wasn’t shocked. Black people are simply treated differently in our country than white people are. And they have been for hundreds of years.
“I give up.”
“I don’t even know what’s true anymore.”
These are comments I’ve seen in the last month on my Facebook feed related to some of the conspiracy theories that have made their way around the internet about the global pandemic we find ourselves in.
Why are conspiracy theories so attractive? What is it that they provide for us, especially in a time like this?
Why.
It’s a simple, three-letter word. Packed with emotion.
It cries out for an answer to
pain
sickness
loss
betrayal
cycles of poverty
meaningless tragedy
struggle
loneliness
and fear.