The story of Jussie Smollett and the implausible hate crime attack against him is now familiar to nearly everyone.

Smollett, a little-known actor on a long-running Fox television show, claimed to have been walking down the street minding his own business at 2 a.m. in downtown Chicago when he was attacked by two white Trump supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats who made reference to his race (he is black), his sexual orientation (he is gay), and the obscure television show on which he appeared. The attackers allegedly placed a noose around his neck and threw bleach at him, informing him that “this is Trump country.” Had any of this actually happened, it might have been the first time in human history that anyone ever said such a thing of downtown Chicago.