Alberta: Suspected Neo-Nazis Firebomb House

This is a story that I only heard today. In Calgary a home of two Communist Party Members was firebombed using molatov cocktails on February 12th. The couple and their four children were able to escape the home, but the home itself was badly damaged. Neo-Nazi white supremacist group members are suspected of causing the crime. The couple Jason Devine and Bonnie Collins believe the reason they were attacked was due to their strong Anti-Racism activism and workshops done around Calgary.

Alberta has had some of the strongest support for Neo-Nazi and white supremacist movements. Though other parts of the country have certainly experienced these movements as well, including white supremacist marches on Parliament Hill during the early 1990s where members were attacking people in the streets and giving the heil to the Canadian Anthem. Alberta however, is one of the few provinces where actual organized groups are active in comparison to unorganized racists here and there. As Neo-Nazi groups in the past few years in Alberta have actually held demonstrations. A great post on one of the groups The Aryan Guard can be found at the Anti-Racist Canada blog.

USA: Detaining Indefinately due to Religion, Race Ruled Legal

Just as the case against Security Certificates began on wednesday in Canada, on the other side of the border a similar case was being held. The Center for Constitutional Rights had filed a case against the government due to the holding of supects after 9/11 for indefinate amount of time. All the suspects were Arab or Muslim non-citizens which mimics the Security Certificate Five in Canada.

Unlike Canada, in the United States the amount of security detainees is in the thousands. They have been held without charge without fair trial. The Federal Judge presiding over the case ruled that it was legal to do so. The basis for holding can be due to religion, race, or ethnicity and the Judge said that "...the executive is free to single out 'nationals of a particular country' and focus enforcement efforts on them."