Far-right and pro-immigration groups gathered for competing protests near the Lacolle border on Saturday afternoon.
Among the anti-immigration coalition were members of Unite de securite patriotique, Yellow Vests Canada, Storm Alliance, the People’s Party of Canada and known white supremacist group Soldiers of Odin.
The location of the protest was symbolic for the anti-immigration protesters. Nearby Roxham Rd. became famous in 2017 as the site where a regular stream of refugee claimants crossed the border from the United States. It was also where Conservative leader Andrew Scheer announced his plans to prevent refugees from claiming asylum in southern Quebec.
Nearly 10,000 refugee claimants were intercepted at Roxham Rd. in 2019.
