illuminance
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Far-right, anti-fascist protesters temporarily shut Quebec border crossing
Amid protests, St-Bernard-de-Lacolle border crossing in Quebec closed to passenger traffic
A standoff between far-right groups and anti-fascist protesters along the Canadian side of the U.S. border forced police to temporarily shut down the crossing near St-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Que., on Saturday.
A separate anti-illegal immigrant rally on Parliament Hill, held amid heightened concerns about the arrival of asylum seekers, also provoked a handful of skirmishes, as riot police stepped in to prevent physical violence.
Roughly 300 members of the Storm Alliance — a group that identifies as "ultranationalist," and claims to eschew ties to far-right white nationalists — arrived at the border crossing near Lacolle, where thousands of migrants have crossed into the country on foot without proper documentation.
La Meute, French for "The Wolf Pack," another anti-immigrant, anti-Islam group, was also on hand at the border town Saturday.
Buses carrying roughly 100 anti-facist — or antifa — counter-protesters, from the group Solidarity Across Borders, left Montreal early Saturday to confront those associated with Storm Alliance and La Meute at the border. By midday, the far-right elements outnumbered those on the other side who said they stood in support of refugees.
Members of the provincial police, Sûreté du Québec, formed a perimeter to keep the two forces roughly 40 metres apart, while both sides taunted one another with chanting.
The police, decked out in tactical gear, with gas masks and heavy weaponry, blocked members of the Storm Alliance from marching closer to makeshift tents built by the federal government to temporarily house refugees, many of whom hail from Haiti.
Storm Alliance dispersed from the scene shortly before 3 p.m. ET after it became clear they would not make it to their intended destination.
http://www.cbc.ca/player/play/1058803779781/
Amid the tension, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) closed the Lacolle crossing to passenger traffic for about four hours. It is now reopened. Traffic was being rerouted to other nearby points of entry.
Shariah a concern for anti-immigration protesters
On Parliament Hill, protesters aligned with a group called the Canadian Coalition of Concerned Citizens (CCCC) assembled to stand against policies of the federal Liberal government they claim have allowed illegal immigration to flourish. Amid cries of "Fascist scum go away," a lone member of the group was involved in a skirmish with members of the antifa movement, before being led away by parliamentary police.
rest of:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/far-right-antifa-clash-across-canada-1.4315053
Asylum seekers cost Canadians $500M+ (so far)
