HR!Day957 - Fri 7/5/24 ReQovery: How I Tumbled Down the QAnon Rabbit Hole and Climbed Out - Katrina Vaillancourt & Stephen Ghiglieri
- --- Humanity Rising Day 957 - Friday July 5, 2024 (GoTo Bottom)
ReQovery is a narrative nonfiction memoir that chronicles the author’s unexpected descent into the QAnon conspiracy theory, following her journey from her passionate support of Bernie Sanders to a six-month entanglement with Pastel Q. The book delves deeply into the personal vulnerabilities that made the author, Katrina Vaillancourt, susceptible to such beliefs, the compelling nature of connecting with other QAnons, and the intense experiences that accompanied being an active participant in this ideology. It also details the critical turning points that challenged her enigmatic faith in Q, the steps that led to a profound personal recovery, and what she’s learned as a result of this entire experience. Interwoven with principles from Nonviolent Communication (NVC), the memoir provides insights into maintaining relationships across ideological divides, fostering responsible digital citizenship, and cultivating objectivity and discernment. ReQovery aims not only to share a personal story of entrapment and escape but also to serve as a resource for others seeking to understand or recover from similar experiences. This unique narrative offers valuable lessons on the dangers (and invisible ubiquity) of digital echo chambers and the importance of empathy and dialogue in healing and understanding.
Katrina Vaillancourt is a certified Nonviolent Communication (NVC) trainer, mediator, and life coach. Born and raised in the liberal and progressive city of Madison, Wisconsin, she moved to California’s equally liberal San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1990s. Raised in a family of passionate Democrats, Katrina has consistently held strong values for peace, environmental protection, and social well-being. Her life motto is “co-creating win-wins,” striving to live as an answer to the question “What would love do?” As a result of her experience falling into and emerging from the QAnon rabbit hole, Katrina has found ways to treat people across the entire political spectrum with compassion, understanding, and respect, modeling skills that are desperately needed in our time. In this conversation, she will be joined by her husband, Stephen Ghiglieri, C-suite executive in the life science industry, who stayed by her side despite the extreme challenges he endured during her six months as a QAnon.
Convener:
Jim Garrison
93 Participants
