On Wednesday morning, Canada made a major move against the far-right group known as the Proud Boys by officially declaring the organization a nationally-recognized terrorist group. This decision comes after the country’s New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh raised a petition to label the far-right group a terrorist organization following the January insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Jon Cherry/Getty Images
For those who may have thought that the Proud Boys, who deem themselves “Western chauvinists,” were primarily based in the United States, the group was actually founded by Canadian writer and Vice co-founder Gavin McInnes, although he attests that he is no longer associated with it. In fact, there are still several chapters across Canada.
Canada’s declaration also includes the recognition of 13 other groups as terrorist organizations, so the Proud Boys, along with new additions Atomwaffen Division and The Base, have now joined the ranks of groups like ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and the Russian Imperial Movement. According to Complex, Canada’s new designation could lead to any crime committed by members of the aforementioned groups being treated as terrorist activity from here on out.
Do you think that the United States will soon follow in its neighbor’s footsteps?
