White nationalist rally in Niagara sparks warning over growing hate groups

People who track hate groups say they are becoming more visible in our region and more organized.

A CBC investigation first delved into these so-called ‘active clubs’ that are operating across Ontario. And recently, one of them held a rally in a Niagara park which has pushed the issue into the spotlight even further.

Over the Labour Day weekend, sixty masked men marched on the General Brock Monument at Queenston Heights in Niagara-on-the-Lake wearing matching shirts, carrying flags, and chanting in unison.

They’re known as Second Sons Canada, and they claim to be a “nationalist club.”

According to their website, they’re focused on political activism and fitness training. But experts warn the group’s ideology and presentation go far beyond that of a social club.

“Second Sons Canada is the more militant arm of a white nationalist network called Diagolon. It was a couple of podcasters and live streamers who would look at the news of the day, be extremely angry about it and offer up a racist and anti-Semitic take,” said Evan Balgord from the Canadian Anti-Hate Network.

RCMP documents describe Diagolon as a “militia-like network with supporters who subscribe to accelerationist ideologies — and the idea that a civil war or collapse of western governments is inevitable and ought to be sped up.”

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On the surface, Second Sons present themselves as Canadian patriots who are frustrated by the status quo – claiming their “birthright has been stolen, and they are being pushed out of society, academics, and the workforce” – and being “replaced by foreigners without any roots or connections to the Canadian people.”

A recent CBC investigative piece that delved into these so called active clubs was able to link members of Second Sons to other white supremacist groups.

Rachel Gilmore, an independent journalist who tracks groups like these, says they pose a real danger.

“The fact that they’ve got all of these individual people who they are constantly inciting fear among, and they’re giving them combat skills, as limited as those might be, that is scary because any one of those individuals could take the messages that they’re consuming everyday into their own hands and do something really awful,” said Gilmore.

And while the Second Sons claim to not partake in any kind of firearms training, they share photos of their members rucking with ammo cans, doing first aid drills and sparring in gyms.

“A lot of these guys — a few of them are former military,” said Gilmore.

All the while, experts say their influence is growing.

“They want to achieve political power so that they can make it legal to do the kind of do mass deportations they want to do — or at least legal enough. And if you want to see what that looks like, all you have to do is look south to the United States where they’re snatching people off the streets and deporting them without any due process. They would love to see the exact same things happening here,” said Balgord.

And the concern isn’t limited to Niagara. Last week, a Hamilton cop was suspended after interacting with posts made online by the Second Sons, a sign advocates say of how far these ideas have reached the mainstream.

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