Canadian military not doing enough to detect, prevent extremism in the ranks: Report

A scathing new report on racism in the Canadian Armed Forces says the military is not doing enough to detect and prevent white supremacists and other extremists from infiltrating its ranks.

The report released by Defence Minister Anita Anand this morning also takes the military to task for not doing enough to address racism and discrimination over the past two decades.

The report is the result of a yearlong review by a panel of retired Canadian Armed Forces members following concerns about systemic racism in the military and links between some members and hate groups.

The report says military efforts to prevent extremists from serving in uniform are both inefficient and insufficient despite promises from senior commanders to address the issue.

It calls for more involvement from police and intelligence agencies and better training to recognize signs of extremism and hate.

The report says the military must act on hundreds of recommendations made in previous studies and reviews which the panel says have fallen by the wayside over the past 20 years.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 25, 2022.