By now you’ve probably heard about the Jussie Smollett incident that took place in Chicago a few weeks ago. Naturally, people and news outlets across the country were outraged at what seemed like a homophobic and racially motivated attack on the TV star. Unfortunately, new information has since come to light through an investigation by the Chicago police that points to the entire attack being a hoax, which sucks for so many reasons its hard to even name them all here. Because this case has been so confusing, here’s a breakdown of everything you need to know, plus a timeline of events since the alleged attack last month.

Who Is Jussie Smollett?

Jussie Smollett is a queer biracial actor and singer who is most famous for playing Jamal Lyon in Empire. (Though, if what the Chicago PD say is true is true then that probably won’t be what he’s most famous for any longer.) The Smollett family consists of a long line of both actors and activists, and have been outspoken politically on causes such as HIV/AIDS prevention, ending apartheid, and more recently, Black Lives Matter. Unrelated but still interesting: Jussie Smollett was also in The Mighty Ducks.

WTF Has Been Going On?

Great question. Here’s a timeline of the events surrounding the attack, as well as information as it unfolded.

January 22: Before the attack , Smollett received a threatening letter to the set of Empire containing white powder that said “You will die black n*****.” The powder turned out to be crushed Tylenol.

January 28th:  Smollett was hospitalized after being attacked by who he recalled to be two white men yelling racist and homophobic slurs at him. In his report to the police, he said they screamed “This is MAGA country” and called him a f**got Empire n*****.”

January 30th: Two days later Chicago police release the images of two persons of interest in the attack.

February 1st: Smollett makes the following statement to Essence:

“Let me start by saying that I’m OK. My body is strong but my soul is stronger. More importantly I want to say thank you. The outpouring of love and support from my village has meant more than I will ever be able to truly put into words. ”

He also doubles down on saying he is being factual and works to dispel rumors about the incident.

February 13th: Two Nigerian brothers are arrested in connection with the attack. This raises questions because Smollett had noted earlier that his attackers were white.

February 14th: Smollett gives the following interview to Good Morning America:

“It’s not necessarily that you don’t believe that this is the truth, you don’t even want to see the truth.” @JussieSmollett tells @RobinRoberts he’s “pissed off” about the attacks on him after details came out after his attack. https://t.co/3HbyU2SFxe pic.twitter.com/a2o949itIJ

— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 14, 2019

February 18th: Starting after the GMA interview,  rumors begin to circulate and sources close to the Chicago PD begin leaking that the attacks were orchestrated and Smollett lied. This caused high profile people, like Cory Booker and Kamala Harris, who previously condemned the attacks to make a statement that they were reserving judgement until more facts came out.

.@eschor asks @CoryBooker to respond to reports that the Jussie Smollett attack may have been planned by the actor.

He called the attack a “modern day lynching” when the news broke. pic.twitter.com/8Zf8y7vhrv

— Megan Pratz (@meganpratz) February 17, 2019

February 19: Deadline reports that Smollett is cut from Empire episodes.

February 20th: The Chicago Police department confirms that Smollett is officially a suspect in his own attack. He is charged with disorderly conduct for filing a false report.

Case Update: Jussie Smollett is now officially classified as a suspect in a criminal investigation by #ChicagoPolice for filing a false police report (Class 4 felony). Detectives are currently presenting evidence before a Cook County Grand Jury. pic.twitter.com/FhDcbBKsuU

— Anthony Guglielmi (@AJGuglielmi) February 20, 2019

February 21st: Smollett turned himself over to Chicago police and was arrested in the early hours of the morning. In a news conference, Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson says police believe Smollett faked bot h the letter and the attack because he was “dissatisfied with this salary.”

Update: According to Chicago police officials, Jussie Smollett wrote a fake letter and paid for the staged attack because he was “dissatisfied with his salary.” https://t.co/MyPbjMeUKh

— Twitter Moments (@TwitterMoments) February 21, 2019

Wow. This whole story is obviously a huge, tumultuous rollercoaster and people are understandably hurt and confused. But let’s make one thing clear: no one should feel bad for having initially believed these reports, even if they end up being false. We’re human and when we hear of someone being violently attacked, we believe that person because the vast majority of crimes are not falsely reported.

If you or someone you know is the victim of a hate crime, you can find resources to help you here.

Heads up, you need to keep up with the news. It’s not cute anymore. That’s why we’ve created a 5x weekly newsletter called The ‘Sup that will explain all the news of the week in a hilarious af way. Because if we weren’t laughing, we’d be crying. Sign up for The ‘Sup now!