Online Domestic Extremism in Canada

The Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) identified 545 domestic extremist accounts in Canada, analyzing 413,288 posts across platforms like X and Telegram. The study found that while the volume of hate speech decreased by 34% from the previous period, anti-migrant and antisemitic content remained prevalent. Violent speech peaked in January 2025, coinciding with Justin Trudeau's resignation and Donald Trump's rhetoric regarding Canada. Key narratives included misogyny, conspiracy theories surrounding Romana Didulo, and anti-government sentiment. The report also highlights a 'Revolutionary Movementarianism' strategy aimed at blending public political activism with the secret build-up of paramilitary structures.

• ISD identified 545 domestic extremist accounts and channels in Canada across 8 platforms. Between November 2024 and February 2025, data was gathered from 269 of these accounts, which produced 413,288 posts. The most active platforms for these posts were X (252,297 posts) and Telegram (146,064 posts).
• The extremist landscape is divided into several sub-ideologies. Ethnonationalists (86 accounts) and white supremacists (82 accounts) had the highest number of accounts and posts. However, anti-Muslim extremists and ethnonationalists achieved the highest levels of engagement, with anti-Muslim extremists showing a significantly more engaged followership relative to their account count.
• Hate speech accounted for 2.3% (9,512 posts) of the total content, representing a 34% decrease from the previous reporting period. The most targeted groups were migrants (26.1%), Jewish people (22.4%), and the LGBTQ community (22.3%).
• Violent speech, including threats and incitement, was found in 0.4% (1,500 posts) of the data. A peak occurred on January 7, 2025, linked to Justin Trudeau's resignation and Donald Trump's comments about Canada becoming the 51st US state, with some posts calling for the military invasion of Canada and the hanging of politicians.
• The report identifies a strategic concept called 'Revolutionary Movementarianism.' This approach seeks to overcome the binary between 'Siege' tactics (lone-wolf/small cell terrorism) and legal political activism by influencing public discourse while secretly establishing paramilitary infrastructure to avoid state suppression.
• Dominant narratives among Canadian extremists include misogynistic 'manosphere' themes, conspiracy theories regarding Romana Didulo (the self-declared 'Queen of Canada'), and strong opposition to Justin Trudeau and Mark Carney. Other recurring topics include pro-Russian views on the Ukraine war and 'white identity' concerns regarding demographic displacement.
• The most frequently linked media sources by these communities are Rebel News, Life Site News, and True North. The website of Romana Didulo also emerged as a top source, exclusively linked to by anti-government extremists.

APA

Institute for Strategic Dialogue (2025). Online Domestic Extremism in Canada. https://www.isdglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nov-Feb-25-Domestic-Extremism-in-Canada.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Strategic Dialogue. Online Domestic Extremism in Canada. 2025. https://www.isdglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nov-Feb-25-Domestic-Extremism-in-Canada.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Strategic Dialogue |title=Online Domestic Extremism in Canada |date=2025 |url=https://www.isdglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nov-Feb-25-Domestic-Extremism-in-Canada.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforstrategicdialogue2025online, author = {{Institute for Strategic Dialogue}}, title = {{Online Domestic Extremism in Canada}}, institution = {Institute for Strategic Dialogue}, year = {2025}, url = {https://www.isdglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nov-Feb-25-Domestic-Extremism-in-Canada.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }