La Meute (, "The Pack") is a Québécois nationalist

pressure group Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...

and

identitarian movement The Identitarian movement or Identitarianism is a Pan-European nationalism, pan-European nationalist, Ethnic nationalism, ethno-nationalist, Far-right politics, far-right ideological movement centred on the preservation of White people, white ...

fighting against

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...

and

radical Islam Islamic extremism refers to extremist beliefs, behaviors and ideologies adhered to by some Muslims within Islam. The term 'Islamic extremism' is contentious, encompassing a spectrum of definitions, ranging from academic interpretations of Is ...

. The group was founded in September 2015 in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

by two former

Canadian Armed Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

members, Éric Venne and Patrick Beaudry. Neither are members of the group anymore. In 2018 the goal of La Meute was to prevent the

Quebec Liberal Party The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; , PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has traditionally supported a form of Quebec federalist ideology with nuance ...

from winning the

2018 Quebec general election The 2018 Quebec general election was held on October 1, 2018, to elect members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The election saw a landslide victory for the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) led by François Legault, which won 74 of 125 seats, g ...

(Which the Liberal party did lose). La Meute does not plan to become a political party, but rather "to become large enough and organized enough to constitute a force that can't be ignored". Most political observers identify La Meute as far-right. The group rejects this. As of April 2018, the group has more than 41,000 members in its private

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic iden ...

, although some journalists believe there are only 4,000 to 5,000 members based on reports of numbers inflation by ex-members. In 2019, La Meute supported the New

Coalition Avenir Québec The Coalition Avenir Québec (, , CAQ) is a Quebec nationalism, Quebec nationalist, Autonomism in Quebec, autonomist and conservatism, conservative

(CAQ) government

Bill 21 The ''Act respecting the laicity of the State'' (), introduced and commonly referred to as Bill 21 or Law 21, is a statute passed by the National Assembly of Quebec in 2019 which asserts that Quebec is a lay state (secular state). It prohibits ...

which bars civil servants in ‘authority’, such as judges, prosecutors, police officers, teachers and school administrators from wearing religious symbols at work. The leader of CAQ sought to distance himself from the group.

Political position

Police officers, experts, and the majority of journalists identify La Meute as far-right. The group is considered

islamophobic Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

, supremacist,

ultranationalist Ultranationalism, or extreme nationalism, is an extremist form of nationalism in which a country asserts or maintains hegemony, supremacy, or other forms of control over other nations (usually through violent coercion) to pursue its specific ...

, or even

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

by some. La Meute is, according to Maxime Fiset, "on the limit of the spectrum of what is far-right" and corresponds to, according to David Morin, a "populist and nationalistic-identitarian far-right fringe". David Morin hesitates between the terms " identitarian far-right" and "

right-wing populism Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right populism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti- elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establis ...

", and notes there are "

communicating vessels Communicating vessels or communicating vasesMario Bunge, ''Philosophy of Science: From Explanation to Justification'', 1998, , p. 369 are a set of containers containing a homogeneous fluid and connected sufficiently far below the top of the liqu ...

" between more radical groups, like Atalante and, sometimes, Storm Alliance. The group is often differentiated from

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

, supremacist,

neo-Nazis Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and racial supremacy (often white supremacy), to att ...

and

neo-fascists Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology which includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, ultraconservatism, racial supremacy, right-wing populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xenop ...

groups by observers, experts, and journalists. Quebec police do not consider La Meute to be a threat. There is debate over whether "far-right" is the best descriptor for La Meute. Some believe we call them far-right "a bit foolishly", declaring "it's difficult to find anything to condemn this group". Finally, some journalists oppose La Meute's public image to its private Facebook group. La Meute rejects the "far-right" label and is known to regularly delete overtly racist comments, or comments inciting violence. Some journalists doubt this, arguing that the Facebook group shows "numerous references to

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

as a pedophile or rapist" and that it can be invalidated "by simply typing "pig" in the search bar". La Meute is known to expel its members who are overtly racist. La Meute's spokesperson, Sylvain Brouillette, identifies La Meute as center left. During Quebec's 2018 general election, Brouillette stated that La Meute is directly inspired by the 2014 electoral program of Quebec Future Coalition (a centre right party) but the group's party leader,

François Legault François Legault (; born May 26, 1957) is a Canadian politician serving as the 32nd premier of Quebec since 2018. A founding member of the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), he has led the party since it began in 2011. Legault sits as a Nationa ...

, has tried to distance his party from thi
claim
See also *

Religious intolerance Religious intolerance or religious bigotry is intolerance of another's religious beliefs, practices, faith or lack thereof. Statements which are contrary to one's religious beliefs do not constitute intolerance. Religious intolerance, rather, ...

Identitarian movement The Identitarian movement or Identitarianism is a Pan-European nationalism, pan-European nationalist, Ethnic nationalism, ethno-nationalist, Far-right politics, far-right ideological movement centred on the preservation of White people, white ...

Illegal immigration to Canada Illegal immigration to Canada is the act of a person who is not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident entering or remaining in Canada in a manner contrary to the ''Immigration and Refugee Protection Act'' and its associated regulations. That ...

Radical Islam Islamic extremism refers to extremist beliefs, behaviors and ideologies adhered to by some Muslims within Islam. The term 'Islamic extremism' is contentious, encompassing a spectrum of definitions, ranging from academic interpretations of Is ...

* Roxham Road *

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

Far-right politics Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meute, La 2015 establishments in Quebec 2015 in Quebec Canadian far-right political movements Identitarian movement Politics of Quebec Quebec nationalism Anti-immigration politics in Canada Anti-immigration politics in Quebec Anti-Islam sentiment in Quebec Anti-Islam sentiment in Canada