Is far-right extremism gaining ground in Canada?

In today’s Big Story Podcast, a new report looking at the circumstances that led to the convoy’s arrival in Ottawa (and other places across Canada) in early 2022 found that it stems from a series of events that began in 2015. The movement took years before efforts at forming a convoy and rolling to Ottawa actually came together — and there were several failed tries along the way.

Stephanie Carvin is a national security expert and author of Polarization and Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremism in Canada since 2015. She said the pandemic was the perfect catalyst to bring many very different groups on the right together.

“Prior to the 2022 convoy … all [the far-right’s] attempts to get a convoy going had never really worked … But if you say, I’m tired of the pandemic, you’re tired of the pandemic, let’s go protest in Ottawa. That’s a much more accessible message.”

So what changed during the pandemic? How were far-right Canadians able to band together long enough to organize the event, and why were so many more relatively moderate citizens drawn to their cause? Was this an example of lightning in a bottle, or the new face of extremism in Canada?

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