Clarence Page: The rise of QAnon isn’t surprising. Americans have long been sucked into conspiracy theories

I’m no less shocked than anybody else by the rise of the wacky QAnon conspiracy theory-turned-movement in this election year, but I’m not surprised by its viral spread.

After all, I’m a Black American. Therefore, as an uncle of mine counseled me decades ago, “If you’re not paranoid, you’re not paying attention.”

I get it. African Americans have a long sad history of being misled by real conspiracies, such as the infamous