Love Has Won

Love Has Won (LHW) is the name of a new religious movement led by Amy Carlson (November 30, 1975–March or April 2021), referred to within the group as "Mother God". The group has been described as a cult by ex-members and media outlets. The group had between 12 and 20 full-time members who lived with her at the time of her death.
Origins.
According to her family, Amy Carlson grew up in Dallas, and was a "straight A student," but early in her adult life began to talk about "outlandish concepts" such as starships. The group began around 2006, when Carlson was around 30 and became interested in New Age philosophy, and subsequently left her third husband, children and her job as a manager at McDonald's and went no-contact with most members of her family. It is believed that Carlson did not initially found the group, but was recruited and subsequently became the group's leader. The group was originally known under the name "Galactic Federation of Light".
Theology.
The theology of Love Has Won has been described as fluid, combining New Age spirituality and conspiracy theories. The group proclaimed that Carlson was a divine being 19 billion years old and had birthed all creation. Carlson claimed she had been reincarnated 534 times, including as Jesus, Joan of Arc, Marilyn Monroe and Cleopatra, and would lead 144,000 people into a mystical "5th dimension". The group claimed that Carlson was the queen of the lost continent of Lemuria. Carlson had stated that Donald Trump was her father, and that she had spoken to the spirit of deceased actor Robin Williams, who she claimed is Archangel Zadkiel. The group's theology also included references to the concepts of Atlantis, the Anunnaki and reptilians. They believe that the world is run by a "cabal", who are determined to keep the planet in a "low vibration" state. Carlson had several romantic partners throughout the groups history, who were referred to as "Father God", and who played a counterpart role to Carlson in the theology of the group. The group also adopted the QAnon conspiracy theory, stating that it describes a divine plan.
Structure and abuse allegations.
A core group of 12-20 members lived with Carlson in Crestone, a small town in Saguache County in southwestern Colorado. The group did daily livestreams on YouTube in order to recruit more members, solicit donations, and promote New Age products and vitamin supplements. The group offers "etheric surgery", which costs $88 per session, which they claim can remove sickness and "negative energy" from the body.
The group has been described as a cult by ex-members and numerous media outlets. Ex-members have accused the group of physical abuse and sleep deprivation, with members allegedly only being allowed to sleep for 4-5 hours a night. The Saguache County Sheriff’s Office reported that they had received "many complaints" about the group from families, about "brainwashing" and fraud. In May 2020, a member of the group was found wandering the wilderness disorientated, naked and dehydrated, after being described by the group as lacking the right energy and being on “the wrong side of the mountain.”. Despite the group banning drink and drugs for members, Carlson was accused of drinking large amounts of alcohol and subsequently behaving abusively. The group featured on an episode of "Dr. Phil" in September 2020, where Carlson and two members were confronted with claims of abuse, which they denied.
History.
The group travelled between Colorado, Oregon, California and Florida prior to 2018, before moving to Moffat, Colorado. The group briefly moved to the island of Kauai in Hawaii in August 2020, where they were received with hostility by locals after Carlson publicly proclaimed that she was the Hawaiian goddess Pele. A multi-day protest ensued, with protestors lighting driftwood fires and chanting Hawaiian prayers around the rented property the group were staying in. Video footage provided to "The Denver Post" by Love Has Won member Lauryn Suarez showed eggs and rocks being thrown at the house, as well as broken windows at the house and on an SUV parked in the driveway. The mayor of Kauai, Derek Kawakami, intervened to negotiate the departure of the group from the island. They subsequently flew to Kahului Airport on Maui, but were convinced to fly back to Colorado in September 2020. In early April 2021 they were located in a RV park in Mount Shasta in northern California, but were asked to leave due to overcrowding.
On April 28, 2021, the mummified corpse of Carlson was discovered in a trailer near Crestone. Its state of decay suggested that she had been dead for several weeks. She was 45 at the time of her death. The body was found in a sleeping bag wrapped in Christmas lights, the face covered in glitter, the eyes missing, in what authorities stated was a makeshift shrine. Seven members of the group were charged with abuse of a corpse (which may be upgraded to the more serious charge of tampering with a deceased human body). They were also charged with child abuse due to the presence of two children in the property. In September 2020 it had been stated that Carlson was in poor health and was paralysed from the waist down, and Carlson said that she had cancer. A photo from a few weeks before she is thought to have died shows her appearing to be emaciated, with thinning hair and discoloured skin with a purplish hue. According to Saguache County Coroner Tom Perrin, Carlson had been ingesting large amounts of colloidal silver, which the group had been promoting as a COVID-19 cure and had received a warning from the FDA for doing so. Consuming colloidal silver over a long period of time can lead to blue-grey discolouration of the skin, as well as seizures and organ failure. Authorities stated that Carlson had not died at the property but in California; her body was subsequently transported back to Colorado. After Carlson's death was publicised, the group's Facebook page stated that she had "ascended", and the website Lovehaswon.org was taken offline. The group renamed their Facebook and YouTube pages 5D Full Disclosure".