The Canadian military’s links to neo-Nazism, white supremacy and right-wing extremism have plunged it into scandal after scandal over the past three decades, and according to an internal study the problem is getting worse.
The military’s advisory panel on systemic racism and discrimination, which then-Defence minister Harjit Sajjan established in December 2020, delivered a scathing final report Monday at a press conference in Ottawa.
It says a toxic, corrosive environment marked by rampant abuse of power is “repulsing” potential new recruits and will continue to harm the defence establishment’s reputation unless it’s rapidly reined it.
“In addition to sexual misconduct and domestic violence, hate crimes, extremist behaviours and affiliations to white supremacy groups are growing at an alarming rate in both Canada and its Defence Team,” the report says. “It is becoming increasingly covert, and technological advances such as Darknet and encryption methods pose significant challenges in detecting these members.”
The four-member panel was given a mandate to seek out and eliminate all sources of anti-Indigenous and anti-Black racism in the ranks. It delivered this troubling warning along with 13 areas of improvement and 43 recommendations.
The report notes that the armed forces have a history of anti-Indigenous colonial conduct, citing the seizure and expropriation of the Stoney Point reserve in southern Ontario under the War Measures Act in 1942 as an example. (more...)
Military involvement in racist, extremist activity ‘growing at an alarming rate’: report
Related:
Investigation Finds Canada Military Rife With Extremism, Islamophobia
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