The ’80s: the decade of neon and perms. The decade everyone’s parents rave about. New things were coming to shelves. The internet and personal computers were becoming common, the first mobile phone was created by Motorola and the first space shuttle was launched. However, good often follows evil.
The Satanic Panic was a moral panic consisting of thousands of people in the United States that later spread to other parts of the world in the ’90s. The panic fueled by conspiracy about false reports, cults and countless false allegations was many’s worst fear.
So, what started the panic across the US? Many say it was a book.
The book, “Michelle Remembers” was published and released in the 1980s, and introduced the idea of the Canadian Satanists cult the author was raised into. This brought along anxiety to families across the nation. The book brings topics of the author’s traumas as a child. “Michelle Remembers” made it seem there could be terror around every corner in the small suburban neighborhoods of America.
In the mid-80s, the popular news station, “20/20,” ran a segment on Satan worship. It discussed issues that parents should worry about. For example, parents believed no child or teen should listen to rock music because it was, “associated with devil worship.” The same was said about pop music, saying there could be backward messages in the songs.
Later in the program, they presented the idea of cult activity. “20/20” correspondent, Tom Jarriel, stated, “Today we have found Satan is alive and thriving, or at least plenty of people believe he is.” Jarriel continued to describe Satan’s followers. “His followers are extremely secretive but found in all walks of life.” He only shared at the end of the show that everything he said was speculative because of a lack of evidence. However, this did not stop people from panicking.
Many did not know what to believe. Was the news correspondence talking to kids about their experiences with Satan? Or about the academic conference that talked about recovered memory and satanic abuse?
The academics that would frequent conferences talking and discussing the signs and warnings of Satan, were few. However, one, Lawrence Pazdar, helped co-write “Michelle Remembers,” the book that fueled the fire. The author talks about how Pazdar saved her memory and helped her remember the satanic cult and trauma she went through.
Lawrence continued to be the leading academic voice in the community. He warned about the dangers and threats of “ritual abuse.” He often would consult prosecutors in criminal trials that had a connection to satanic rituals.
A frequent scenario was court hearings of suspected satanists or “ritual abusers.” One of the most infamous cases that was sparked from a rumor of Satanism was The McMartin Preschool Abuse Trial. This was one of the most expensive and longest trials that have happened in American history. The government spent $15 million dollars investigating and prosecuting as long as seven years. All of the time and resources put into this case were useless when there were no convictions made in the whole process.
The main or principal defendant in the case was Ray Buckey who spent five years in jail awaiting trial for something he did not commit. Buckey was accused by children who later stated that their stories were fabricated. Only a few allegations ruined the careers of the staff members of McMartin Preschool.
The trial is often shown as a cautionary tale. A juror who served on the jury later said that she learned a lesson, “I now realize how easily something can be said and misinterpreted and blown out of proportion.”
Most often conspiracies are just theories. They are often harmless and never blown out of proportion. So what makes this conspiracy theory different?
Although there may be some crazy flat earthers, there are also never any trials or accusations that ruin lives. The panic that someone was going to think you were practicing satanism or supporting it could ruin everything. However, on the other side, many were scared of Satan itself. The panic started from a book, a psychologist claiming to be able to recover memories and a fast spread of false information.
Many realize now that satanic panic is an over-exaggeration of ideas. Although the idea of the devil lurking around any corner could scare someone, the truth is that it was a panic that was started by people.
