Canada’s minister for public safety has said white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups are an increasing threat to the country.
Ralph Goodale said the extremist groups manifest their hatred through violent anti-Semitism or crimes such as the deadly van attack along Yonge Street in Toronto.
Goodale said the federal government is working with internet service providers to stop the spread of the groups’ ideologies.
The Honourable @RalphGoodale outlines how "security intelligence and police agencies are combatting those who have become radicalized to extremist violence" during his lecture on national security at the @JSGSPP. pic.twitter.com/qVc5PbjmCw
— University of Regina (@UofRegina) January 15, 2019
He said that while the perpetrators in neo-Nazi or white supremacist attacks might have acted as individuals, they are inspired by what they read online.
At a speech on national security at the University of Regina, he said internet providers have a responsibility to ensure they do not give a platform to such content.
In the summer of 2018, an Angus Reid Institute poll showed that most Canadians were more afraid of Islamism than white supremacy.
BC, however, was the only province in the country to be more concerned about white supremacy, with 56% of those polled saying they had a “great deal of concern” about the ideology.
That was 5% higher than those who attached the same level of concern to radical Islamic ideas.
With Canadian Press
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