Satanic panic

The Satanic panic refers to more than twelve thousand cases of alleged Satanic ritual abuse that began in the United States in the 1980s. These cases, which often involved children, were unsubstantiated. The Satanic panic received prodigious media coverage and was featured in heavy metal music, on Ouija boards, and in role-playing games, which increased the anxiety it caused. Some sociologists have contended that the Satanic panic was fueled by the financial challenges faced by people at the time that caused more women to enter the workforce and more children to attend daycare centers. Satanic panic cases spawned in daycare centers across the United States, with one of the most famous being McMartin Preschool in Manhattan Beach, California, where reports were made about cults committing mass acts of child abuse.

By the mid-1990s, the Satanic panic began to be debunked. However, its repercussions lingered. Accusations had ruined reputations, and in the most severe of cases, landed innocent people in prison. For childcare centers, a chain reaction of investigations took place, often based on false charges, in which authorities dug underneath the buildings looking for tunnels used to transport children to places where they were abused.

Background

The Satanic panic, sometimes referred to as the ritual abuse scare or daycare panic, was unsubstantiated moral anxiety that began in the early 1980s. It was based on rumors of cults engaging in mass child abuse and Satanic rituals throughout the United States, frequently in childcare centers. The panic began shortly after the book Michelle Remembers, written by Canadian psychologist Lawrence Pazder and his former patient, Michelle Smith, was published in 1980. The book described the patient’s childhood recollections of abuse by Satanic worshippers. It became a bestseller, despite challenges to the accusations, and started a moral panic, particularly among families with children in childcare centers. Financial problems throughout the United States at the time forced many families to become two-working-parent households. A number of those families struggled with the guilt of putting their young children in daycare centers and preschools. This guilt was exacerbated by rumors of Satanic abuse accusations.

In 1983, a woman accused an employee of McMartin Preschool in Manhattan Beach, California of abusing her child. According to some attorneys, the case became an example of how not to investigate a crime. After receiving letters describing the alleged sex crimes, parents were asked to question their children as to whether they witnessed crimes or experienced abuse. Therapists also interviewed children, often asking leading or suggestive questions. In 1986, seven employees of McMartin Preschool were charged with more than one hundred counts of child molestation and other crimes. However, the charges against five of the suspects were dropped due to weak evidence. By that time, though, the panic had set in. Rumors of animal sacrifices, a “goatman,” and other wild accusations were rampant. The McMartin trial ended with no convictions. Dozens of similar cases took place throughout the country.

The FBI was involved directly with many of the alleged cases involving Satanic panic. Daytime talk shows and television news magazines ran special segments addressing it. Approximately twenty million homes watched a 1988 NBC special on the topic that was hosted by Geraldo Rivera. Although the panic frequently revolved around daycare centers, other industries were also impacted. Procter & Gamble, a large consumer goods corporation, was also accused in 1985 of using its profits to support devil worship. By the end of the Satanic panic, nearly two hundred people had been charged, and dozens were convicted. Many of those who had been incarcerated were eventually freed. This was the result of the West Memphis Three, which refers to three Arkansas teens who were convicted of murdering three boys in 1994. The killings were thought to be Satanic sacrifices. The three were freed in 2011.

Today

Although the Satanic panic has remained largely a memory since the 1990s, a renewed interest occurred in 2017, when a twist on the Satanic panic returned with a focus on politics. QAnon is an unsubstantiated American political conspiracy theory movement that originated from far-right political supporters who called for a day of reckoning when elite Satanic followers in large businesses, government, and the media would be arrested and punished for their sins. The conspiracy began in late 2017, when an anonymous poster left messages on the message board 4chan. The individual signed the messages with a letter Q and boasted of having “Q-clearance” for US security purposes. Later messages were called Q drops and used cryptic language. Some supported the goals and platforms of President Donald Trump. Although the primary focus of QAnon was political, the introduction of Satanism and the unsupported connections to various high-ranking liberal politicians had some sociologists and political scientists connecting it to the 1980s panic. Democratic politicians faced allegations from QAnon supporters that were like those faced by childcare workers in the 1980s.

In 2023, remnants of the original Satanic panic returned to the news. On April 10, 2023, Melvin Quinney of San Antonio, Texas, had his 1991 conviction of indecency with a child dismissed. Though initially sentenced to twenty years in prison, Quinney was released in 1999 but was required to register as a sex offender after accusations had been made by his son, John Parker. As an adult, John Parker, who had also accused his father of being a leader in a Satanic cult, testified in 2022 that his mother and other adults forced him to disparage his father. Melvin Quinney received help from the Innocence Project of Texas to get his conviction vacated. The following year, some commentators noted that the premiere of the new television series Hysteria!, set during the period of the Satanic panic, illustrated that the panic, and its implications, continued to linger in the public conscience.

Bibliography

Caldwell, Noah, et al. “America’s Satanic Panic Returns—This Time through QAnon.” NPR, 18 May 2021, www.npr.org/2021/05/18/997559036/americas-satanic-panic-returns-this-time-through-qanon. Accessed 8 Apr. 2023.

Hernandez, Erica, and Misael Gomez. “San Antonio Man Wrongfully Convicted in 1991 Has Charges Dismissed in Satanic Panic Case.” KSAT, 10 Apr. 2023, www.ksat.com/news/local/2023/04/10/san-antonio-man-wrongfully-convicted-in-1991-has-charges-dismissed-in-satanic-panic-case/. Accessed 10 Apr. 2023.

Keeley, Matt. “What Is Satanic Panic? Debunked ‘80s Conspiracy Theory Is Making a Return.” Newsweek, 27 July 2022, www.newsweek.com/what-satanic-panic-debunked-80s-conspiracy-theory-making-return-1728190. Accessed 8 Apr. 2023.

Romano, Aja. “Why Satanic Panic Never Really Ended.” Vox, 31 Mar. 2021, www.vox.com/culture/22358153/satanic-panic-ritual-abuse-history-conspiracy-theories-explained. Accessed 8 Apr. 2023.

Soloski, Alexis. "The Satanic Panic That Never Goes Away." The New York Times, 27 Oct. 2024, www.nytimes.com/2024/10/27/arts/television/the-satanic-panic-that-never-goes-away.html. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

Yuhas, Alan. “It’s Time to Revisit the Satanic Panic.” New York Times, 31 Mar. 2021, www.nytimes.com/2021/03/31/us/satanic-panic.html. Accessed 8 Apr. 2023.