The far-right convoy in Ottawa was dispersed in 2022, but fascist organising is dangerously reviving, and needs to be confronted by a working-class movement, argues John Clarke 

In this extremely volatile and uncertain period, which is being made even more threatening and unstable by the trade crisis ushered in by Donald Trump’s tariff measures, there are undeniable openings for far-right organising in Canada. Indeed, we are seeing renewed efforts to lay the foundations for a fascist street army. 

Recently, disturbing evidence has emerged of another round of fascist organising and recruitment within the military. Earlier this month, the CBC reported that the ‘RCMP (the federal police force) has charged four men, including two active members of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), with being part of an extremist plot that allegedly involved creating an anti-government militia with a massive trove of weapons.’ 

Police claim that this group intended ‘to forcibly take possession of land in the Quebec City area.’ It is further suggested that three of the accused ‘took part in military-style training, as well as shooting, ambush, survival and navigation exercises.’ Moreover, police searches led to ‘the seizure of 16 explosive devices, 83 firearms and accessories, approximately 11,000 rounds of ammunition of various calibres, nearly 130 magazines and four pairs of night-vision goggles.’ 

The CBC article quotes a security analyst who draws the conclusion that the ‘amount of weapons and the amount of ammunition and the improvised explosive devices tells me that they were building up for something pretty significant. They were either trying to recruit many more people, so they were going to need that level of weapons and ammunition, or they were preparing for some kind of siege.’ 

Right-wing infiltration 

In 2020, faced with scandalous revelations about fascists operating within the military, army commander, Lt.-Gen. Wayne Eyre, convened ‘a meeting of all commanding officers and regimental sergeants major — 450 mid-level leaders — to discuss the problem of far-right infiltration of the military.’ Eyre also admitted at that time that ‘the army ha[d] a growing problem of right-wing extremism [and] reiterated his determination to “crush” hateful ideology and acts in the ranks.’ 

The fact that, five years later, fascists within the armed forces appear to be laying plans for a veritable armed uprising strongly suggests that the high-level undertaking to root out the far-right presence in the military, to the extent that it was put into effect, has proven to be a dismal failure. 

Shortly after the news broke of the armed plot within the military, the Mayor of Hamilton, Ontario, Andrea Horwath, had to respond to ‘a CBC News investigation which found members of white supremacist groups have been preparing for a “race war” in Hamilton-area gyms and parks.’ This investigation had concluded that ‘white nationalists are getting together to train’ and holding ‘active sessions’ that are ‘also part of the groups’ recruitment and propaganda.’ 

The mayor rightly deplored the fascist activity but her assurance that ‘hate has no home in Hamilton’ rang rather hollow. Clearly, there is an active fascist grouping in the city that is organising and vigorously recruiting. She failed to acknowledge this reality or to address any of the economic, social and political factors that have created this situation. 

Some three years have passed since far-right organisers, using concerns over public-health restrictions during the pandemic as means of drawing around them a wider base of support, were able to stage a so-called ‘Freedom Convoy.’ Trucks and other vehicles drove across the country and descended on the parliament in Ottawa in what Todd Gordon has accurately described as ‘the biggest protest organized by the Canadian far right since the 1930s.’ 

This mobilisation captured international headlines and created an undeniable crisis for the federal government, while the Ottawa police continued to treat the disruptive and lengthy stand-off that the convoy established with the utmost leniency. The ‘far-right protesters swarmed Ottawa with reactionary exuberance, waving Nazi, Confederate, Gadsden, Red Ensign, and Maple Leaf flags, issuing threats of violence against opponents, and dreaming of recuperating a mythologized lost Canada.’ 

There is no doubt that the convoy represented an impressive organisational achievement for the far right. Those who staged it were able adroitly to bring around them a larger periphery of conservative supporters by focusing on the ‘hot-button’ issue of pandemic restrictions and by winning the enthusiastic co-operation of a section of mainstream politicians. 

The convoy’s organisers, however, made a serious miscalculation that undermined their action and squandered much of the political momentum they had achieved. They launched their highly disruptive campaign without putting in place any clear exit strategy. Their demands were quite woolly, as they focused on public-health restrictions that were in any case being relaxed. It was never clear just what measures they required of the federal government in order to bring their effective occupation of central Ottawa to a conclusion. 

As the days turned into weeks, the authorities became increasingly anxious to bring the disruption to a conclusion. When convoy supporters began to stage blockades at border crossings, the threat of very serious impacts was greatly compounded and became intolerable. An economic impact analysis issued at the time by the government of Canada painted a very dire picture of the potential impacts if these actions were not terminated. 

At this point, the incredibly timid reluctance to take decisive action against the convoy was finally set aside. The Emergencies Act was invoked and the right-wing political festival was dispersed by carefully selected police units that would not allow their right-wing political sympathies to deter them from acting decisively. Several of the leading organisers of the convoy faced criminal charges that have tied them up in court right up to the present moment. In fact, two of them, Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, will be facing sentencing hearings this week. 

New upsurge of the right 

If the far right made some mistakes in carrying out its Freedom Convoy, it also showed that it represents a very serious long-term threat that can’t be dismissed or underestimated. Recent developments within the Canadian Armed Forces and evidence of elaborate fascist training and recruitment initiatives are strong indications that the far right is resilient and determined. 

The Freedom Convoy was made possible by a mood of reactionary resentment that had been greatly sharpened by the dislocation and uncertainty caused by the Covid pandemic and the public-health restrictions associated with it. It is glaringly obvious that the trade crisis that Canada now faces, as the Trump administration turns to protectionist measures, will create considerable economic hardship and instability. Under these conditions, a resurgence of organised activity by the far right is more than likely. The incidents that we have seen this month may well be an indication of a great deal more to come. 

Under conditions of trade war, we can expect serious job losses, a serious increase in the cost of living and a major round of austerity measures. Mark Carney’s Liberal government will be seeking to impose the costs of Trump’s tariffs and their impact on profits on the working class. 

To the extent that fascist organisations and far-right organisers seek to use these conditions of economic adversity and social instability to spread their hateful message, it will be necessary to confront them. We must mobilise against them and prevent them from building and recruiting. 

At the same time, however, the far right will always be able to make gains if working-class movements fail to provide a lead under conditions of crisis. The best way to marginalise the right and prevent it from growing is to build powerful mass working-class action. If this is not forthcoming under the present conditions, we face the prosect of serious defeats and the basis for advances by the far right that will go well beyond those that were registered at the time of the Freedom Convoy.