Route links
- News
- Canada
Ex-military status is so strong in anti-government movements that some adherents falsely claim to be veterans, the MEMRI report says.
Date Posted:
June 1, 2022 • 2 minutes ago • Read 5 minutes ago • 276 comments A member of the American right-wing militia group Three Percenters joins several militia groups in Stone Mountain, Georgia, on August 15, 2022 2020. Last June, Canada named the group a terrorist entity, saying it posed a “significant threat” to internal security. Photo of Dustin Chambers / REUTERS
Content of the article
Canadian military veterans play a disproportionate role in anti-government movements, a change exacerbated by pandemic restrictions, according to a report by an extremist surveillance organization that monitors online activity.
Announcement 2
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
The influence of former military status within anti-government movements is so strong that some adherents falsely claim to be veterans to bolster their status as leaders, the report says.
The MEMRI report, a non-profit organization that monitors terrorism and extremism based in Washington, DC, highlights several recent examples of leadership, support, and calls for action by Canadian veterans and alleged group veterans. anti-government protests and forums.
“Veterans play a prominent role in extremist anti-government movements, and are often presented as a vanguard or security element for anti-government movements,” the report says.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau talks about truckers protesting during an emergency debate in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, February 7, 2022. Photo by REUTERS / Blair Gable
The report highlights several organizations that appear to be heavily populated or influenced by veterans.
Announcement 3
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
“Veteran-led anti-government movements include Diagolon, Veterans 4 Freedom, Three Percenter and the Veterans Brigades,” the report said last week.
Some of his online efforts are directed directly at recruiting veteran and military service colleagues, using military terminology and messages in his appeals.
A Canadian veteran, wearing a military cap with a regimental insignia, said in an online video on Telegram: “The Prime Minister of Canada is lying to everyone, mayday mayday mayday, calling all veterans, calling all veterans, mayday mayday mayday. ”
The report highlights Diagolon, an organization led by Jeremy MacKenzie, a Canadian military veteran who served in Afghanistan. MacKenzie is currently facing 13 gun charges following a search of his Nova Scotia home by the RCMP caused by his alleged appearance in online gun videos.
Announcement 4
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
According to a recent RCMP statement, Jeremy MacKenzie of Plaid Army / Diagolon was arrested in January on gun charges in his home province of Nova Scotia.
Despite the arrest, he traveled to Ottawa shortly afterwards to attend the convoy protests.1 / https://t.co/SlWP8H8GeI
– Canadian Anti-Hate Network (@antihateca) February 2, 2022
Announcement 5
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
“Followers of (Diagolon) are prominent on extreme anti-government networks on social media, often posting content that promotes violence, civil war and white supremacy,” the report said.
A MacKenzie partner, Derek Harrison, in a live video broadcast during the occupation of the Ottawa convoy called for “our own January 6 event, to see some of these truckers cross this 16-foot wall.”
Veterans were also featured, online and in person, at the Freedom Convoy demonstrations and protests in Ottawa and at the Windsor border crossing earlier this year.
Derek Harrison: “I’d love to see our own January 6 event. See some of these truckers go through this 16-foot wall.”
White anti-Semitic nationalist calling for a January 6 event in Canada.
If that happens, @gofundme will have a lot to explain
1/3 pic.twitter.com/kcPfFkKy3S
– The Tonynator (@TonyYvce) January 24, 2022
Announcement 6
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
At the Ottawa protest, a Canadian Air Force veterinarian delivered a speech urging Canadians to risk their lives in their struggle because “authoritarian tyranny is only defeated by sacrifice.”
Another veteran of the demonstration asked veterans to fight another war: “You have to defend your country again, you don’t wear the uniform right now, but you’re no less a soldier … You all know what? It’s like defending “Freedom and democracy all over the world, we’ve done it. And it’s your turn to do it here in your country.”
A second Ottawa-like event, centered on cyclists rather than truckers, was hosted by veteran Neil Sheard. Sheard wears military medals on his vest that also includes a veteran’s poppy. He said he made two tours to Afghanistan, where he was injured.
Announcement 7
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
Organizer Neil Sheard invites bikers to the Rolling Thunder Rally in Ottawa. Photo by freedomconvoytiktok
Speeches at the event said the Canadian government was waging a “war on freedom”, calling the previous truckers’ protest “a glimmer of hope and an opportunity to heal” and said the government, police and other Canadian officials have been “corrupted.”
A group called Veterans For Freedom (often called Veterans 4 Freedom or V4F) says its mission is to bring together Canadian Armed Forces veterans across Canada for “legal civic action to restore the fundamental rights and freedoms of Canadians.”
V4F has been linked to other moves, such as Diagolon and the Freedom Convoy, the report says. V4F stated in May that more than 1,000 applications for membership came from former members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
One of the leaders of V4F is Eddie Cornell, who also took part in the trucker protests; In a video on his website, he said that “we are working with a sense of urgency because I think the time window to restore these freedoms is short.”
Announcement 8
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
Tom Marazzo, a founding member of V4F, rejected any claim that the organization was linked to extremism or terrorism.
He said linking concerned veterans to extremism is an attempt to discredit concerns raised by those who oppose restrictions, mask warrants, use of the Emergency Measures Act and other issues.
“I think this colossal shame of the RCMP’s intelligence is a bigger story … Veterans are also involved in their communities with sports, charities, churches and many other things,” he told the National Post.
The Three Percenter movement, an ideology that clings to anti-government militia groups in the United States, is listed as a designated terrorist organization in Canada. His support has ties to Canadian veterans and a presence in Canada, the report says.
Announcement 9
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
A supporter has an online presence in which he says he is a veteran trying to build a militia group in his native Alberta, the report says. The man said he was helping with the convoy blockade at the Coutts, AB border crossing.
Looking south on Highway 4 after the blockade in Coutts, Ab., On Saturday, February 5, 2022. Photo by Mike Drew / Mike Drew / Postmedia
According to the report, the Veterans Brigades, initiated by a U.S. veterinarian, have become a cross-border anti-government forum.
“The forum has virulent anti-Semitic and white supremacist content and includes many neo-Nazi users. Dozens of self-proclaimed Canadian veterans are active on the forum in various specific groups in Canada, ”the report says.
On May 25, the Veterans Brigades staged a video calling for “those who have been sworn in” (usually a reference to current and retired soldiers and police officers) to “end the corrupt Justin Trudeau regime” in a “people’s revolution.” according to MEMRI tracking.
Announcements 10
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
Another forum member says he is a former soldier who lives in Saskatchewan and is forming a network that supports the American patriotic movement. He posted: “We will not bow down and win.”
Another promoted a recruitment video that was intended to show “military and police in training to retake Canada.”
The nexus between army veterans and the convoy of truckers was partly driven by ideology but also by demographics: veterans are overrepresented in the trucking industry, which accounts for up to 20% of drivers. says the report.
Pandemic restrictions were a boost for increased anti-government activity.
“The COVID-19 pandemic provided fodder for many anti-government extremist groups, some of which included disgruntled veterans,” the report says.
Announcement 11
This ad has not yet been uploaded, but your article continues below.
Content of the article
“These groups perceived government policies to curb the spread of the virus as authoritarian measures to curb the freedoms they had fought for abroad. Veterans were among prominent members of anti-vaccine and anti-blockade protests across Canada. , forming various groups such as the anti-government movement Take Action Canada “.
Take Action Canada is not …