Major QAnon influencer Ron Watkins compared himself to civil rights icon Rosa Parks during a convention hosted by conspiracy theorists in Nevada.
Watkins, who has been accused of being behind the QAnon conspiracy, gave his speech on Saturday at the For God & Country: Patriot Double Down in Las Vegas.
During his speech, Watkins took aim at the cancel culture and efforts by big tech companies, such as Facebook, to remove QAnon and other conspiracy theorist accounts.
Watkins also compared himself to Parks, who is best known for her refusal to give up her seat for a white passenger on a racially segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955.
Speaking to the audience, Watkins said: "We are living now through a modern digital civil rights movement and you could call me the new Rosa Parks," Watkins said, before being interrupted by applause.
"I've been out there [online], getting canceled left and right over the past few years. I've been on the front lines fighting so you guys can have a voice.
"And you might say, 'Oh, why is Ron the new digital Rosa Parks?' Well, I want to get on the bus. I want to get on the Twitter bus. I want to get on the Google bus. I want to get on the Facebook bus. I want to get on the Chase Bank bus. We have all been kicked off the bus."
Watkins is one of several figures to attend the event who have shared pro-QAnon content and spread the baseless conspiracy theory online.
Among the QAnon conspiracy's more outlandish claims is that a global cabal of politicians and celebrities is operating a child sex trafficking ring and that somehow former President Trump will expose them before they are arrested and executed.
The weekend convention was organized by John Sabal, known on Telegram as QAnon John, who has worked to promote the conspiracy theory both online and offline.
Sitting Republican lawmakers and Secretary of State candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump were also listed as attending the QAnon convention.
All the Republicans who are listed as attending the event have shared baseless claims that widespread voter fraud denied Trump victory in the 2020 Presidential Election.
Watkins has also latched onto claims the 2020 Presidential Election was somehow stolen by President Joe Biden.
Earlier this month, Watkins announced his intention to run as a Congress candidate for Arizona and repeated the baseless claim of widespread voter fraud in a video shared on Telegram
"President [Donald] Trump had his election stolen, not just in Arizona but in other states, too," Watkins said in his video campaign announcement. "We must now take this fight to Washington, D.C. to vote out all the dirty Democrats who have stolen our republic."
Newsweek has contacted the organizers of the For God & Country: Patriot Double Down for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Anders Anglesey is a U.S. News Reporter based in London, U.K., covering crime, politics, online extremism and trending stories. Anders ... Read more
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