Photo: Jeff Swensen/Getty
Political rallies typically feature cheering, applause and energetic sign-waving that signify support of the candidate at the podium. It’s rare in a post-World War II society, though, for audiences to show their support with a blank face and raised right arm — something Americans who saw footage of the events have been quick to point out.
Jeff Swensen/Getty
Donald Trump’s Save America Rally
According toVice, Trump was on the stage spreadingdisinformation about the 2020 electionand criticizing the FBI’ssearch of his Mar-a-Lago residencebefore one section of the crowd all raised an arm and extended an index finger.
But there’s another theory about the hand gestures at the Save America rally that’s intertwined with theQAnon conspiracy theory, which posits that a powerful and Satanic child sex trafficking ring has been conspiring against Trump since he launched his political career.
This campaign season, Trump has been playing “Mirrors” at his events, seemingly trying to get as close to playing “wwg1wga” as he can without technically supporting the fringe group. QAnon believers have taken notice, and shared excitement online that Trump is in their corner. (It’s worth noting that “Mirrors” is a sleepy and hard-to-find instrumental; it’s not the kind of music Trump’s team would accidentally queue up for a political rally.)
When people raised a finger as “Mirrors” played during Trump’s rally Saturday, it appeared possible that the gesture was meant to symbolize the QAnon motto of moving forward as one. And QAnon believers took credit for doing just that.
Doug Mastriano.Michael M. Santiago/Getty
Doug Mastriano’s Chambersburg Rally
The second event that struck concern, after attendees were directed to raise their arms in an eerily similar way to Hitler’s “Sieg Heil” salute, was Mastriano’s Saturday rally in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
Accusations of anti-semitism against Mastriano — whose Democratic opponent is Jewish — were front of mind when a video circulated from Saturday’s rally where he asked everyone in the crowd to raise their right hands in the air before delivering a speech calling for America to have “a new birth of liberty.”
He then directed everyone to swiftly bring their hands down on the count of three, and the crowd shouted “as one” in unison as they lowered their arms. Almost immediately, people began pointing to similarities between his rally and those of the Nazi Party.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer.
“Yes, this is a Nazi salute, at a Doug Mastriano campaign event in Pennsylvania. In 2022. Democracy is literally on the ballot in November,“wrotemedia commentator and lawyer Tristan Snell in response tofootagefrom Mastriano’s event.
Lawyer Aaron Parnas — who once firmly supported Trump before changing parties and becoming a Democratic activist — responded to the footage with his own tweets,writing, “As a Jew in America, this is extremely scary.”
“Hate is on the rise across America,” Parnassaid. “Because of the far-right, anti-Semitic events are extremely prevalent and we are seeing candidates like Doug Mastriano use Nazi-like symbolism in their rallies. November’s election is the most important of our lifetimes.”
source: people.com
