Report back on the May 19, 2025, People’s Anti-Fascist Festival

A little Context

In the run-up to Journée nationale des Patriotes 2025, celebrated on Monday, May 19, this year, the ethnonationalist organization Nouvelle Alliance (NA) called its second annual commemoration of Nouvelle France settler Adam Dollard des Ormeaux at the monument in his honour in Montreal’s Parc La Fontaine. On May 20, 2024, the far-right group had a similar gathering at Dollard’s monument (the year before that, NA activists had gathered at Pied-du-Courant, in the southeast of the city, to pay tribute to the Lower Canada Patriotes). The folkloric Dollard des Ormeaux is not, it must be stressed, the hero that NA and reactionary nationalists of its ilk insist on glorifying.

Did You Know?

Dollard des Ormeaux is not the “saviour of New France”
that nineteenth-century “historians” make him out to be.

He was a young French adventurer who tried to steal furs from the Iroquois.
The idiot ended up trapped in Long-Sault.

He refused to negotiate with his enemies, which led to the revolt of his Huron allies,
and that worked out badly for him and his companions.

Some versions of the story claim that he built an improvised explosive device
that detonated where he was holed up, thereby guaranteeing his defeat.

Rather than being the courageous saviour of the colony that Lionel Groulx portrays him as,
he is more of the OG imbecile of French Canada, a pillar of self-sabotage,
rendered a heroic figure by nationalist scribes in need of foundational yarns.

Also, Fuck Nouvelle Alliance!

Fed up with some fifty identitarian nationalists with stone-age ideas traipsing around Montréal with impunity, concerned citizens and people from the neighbourhood, along with members of community organizations, anti-racist activists, and trade unionists mobilized in recent weeks to organize a “People’s Festival Against Fascism” in protest.

The main goal of this festive gathering was to occupy the area around the Dollard des Ormeaux monument in order to denounce the growing influence of the far right, in general, and the ambitions of Nouvelle Alliance, in particular. The celebration was a great success in its own right, by our count, attracting between three and four hundred people to the park between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. We salute the tremendous effort made by those involved, and are reassured to see that citizens of Montréal and of Québec generally are ready to mobilize to confront the recent wave of normalization of the far right in public discourse.

A number of articles have been published in the media over the past few days, the majority demonstrating a flagrant lack of understanding of Nouvelle Alliance and its strategy. While we welcome the mainstream media’s growing—albeit belated—interest in Québec’s far right, it is clear that their attention to this area is still leaves something lacking, and that for a variety of structural reasons, they generally ignore the considerable efforts our collective has made over the past few years to shed light on this subject.

Here, then, is a detailed insider’s account of the events of May 19, 2025, that we hope will shed light on elements that have been overlooked or simply glossed over by the media and other key observers.

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Leading up to the Gathering

On the evening of Sunday, May 18, the day before the commemoration, Nouvelle Alliance posted a series of characteristically austere photos on its social media accounts, saying: “the Patriote song [Tex Lecor, 1968] will be sung at the foot of the Dollard des Ormeaux monument.”

Given that Nouvelle Alliance was certainly well aware of the popular festival scheduled to take place at the foot of the monument at the same time as their event, this made it clear that they planned to occupy the contested space.

How they planned to do that became clear on Monday morning at around 8:00 a.m., when a contingent of a dozen or so people, made up of part of the NA core and a few goons, who were possibly recruited for the occasion, gathered at the opposite end of Parc La Fontaine. This contingent, dressed in black, moving in military formation, and wearing combat gloves and mouthguards had clearly come looking for a fight.

This small group soon began marching toward the Dollard Des Ormeaux monument, with the clear aim of physically dislodging the popular rally organizers who were setting up and, we presume, taking control of the space “by any means necessary.”

Fortunately, alerted by the previous day’s publication to the possibility of violence, a few autonomous activists mobilized in the early hours of the morning to confront them and prevent a cowardly attack on citizens taking the opportunity to advance a vision of an inclusive and welcoming Québec. There was a physical confrontation in the southeast section of Parc La Fontaine, during which NA members made full use of their combat gear.

It’s clear that the Nouvelle Alliance core group arrived anticipating—and savouring—this sort of confrontation. This new combative approach, which until now we hadn’t associated with this group, stands in stark contrast to the image of clean-cut middle-class hipsters that the group has promoted for several years. It will be interesting to see for how long NA can maintain this ambiguity. Engaging in hand-to-hand combat with left-wing activists will complicate efforts to carve out a place in mainstream politics by infiltrating the Parti Québécois and Bloc Québécois.

Once an SPVM intervention ended the confrontation, the NA members who had taken part in the assault were held by police at a distance from the monument where two rival events were scheduled to take place.

It’s worth noting that the prevention of NA’s plans as a result of the confrontation enabled the organizers of the popular festival to quietly set up their six tents, hang numerous banners around the monument, and go ahead with the convivial, family-friendly event. We salute the courage of those who blocked NA—whose violent impulses are now obvious—to protect their community and, ultimately, guarantee the success of the event.

A Festive gathering in Parc La Fontaine

By 10:00 a.m., it was party time, and antifascist sympathizers began to gather in growing numbers. Litres of coffee were served, there was face painting for children, lively music rang out across the park, and impromptu soccer matches added to the fun. The atmosphere was decidedly festive!

The same cannot be said of the experience of the small band of identitarians gathered around NA, who were unable to get close to the monument and found themselves facing off with the police for quite a while.

 

Unfortunately for Nouvelle Alliance, real life isn’t a school yard and announcing your event first isn’t enough to reserve a space, especially when it’s to spread hatred of others disguised as love of your nation.

The nationalist group’s militants and its sympathizers were forced to set up on the sidewalk about fifty metres from the Dollard des Ormeaux monument, held at bay by a large police presence and the several hundred people who attended the festival against fascism. Disappointed and looking dejected, the Nouvelle Alliance militants and their sympathizers tried, rather feebly, to hold their commemoration in spite of everything, but were drowned out by the popular festival’s music and antifascist chants.

Speaking of sympathizers, we should mention the notable presence of David Leblanc, a neo-Nazi bonehead well known in antifascist circles, since he likes to take photos of himself giving the Nazi salute (he was notably active with Soldiers of Odin Québec). We also mentioned him almost exactly one year ago, since he was also present at the Nouvelle Alliance commemoration on May 20, 2024.

At the time, the identity group’s leaders claimed that they couldn’t control who participated in their events, as they were public activities, and that they hadn’t known the ugly truth about David Leblanc. What excuse will the cryptofascists of Nouvelle Alliance come up with this year? Knowingly and without raising an eyebrow, they allowed a loud and proud neo-Nazi to walk alongside them all day, even shaking his hand and chatting with him.

It’s hard to imagine that some people still doubt Nouvelle Alliance’s ideological position.

Another sinister character who reappeared for the second year running was Shawn Beauvais MacDonald, the main organizer of the Frontenac Active Club, who was again spotted prowling around the Nouvelle Alliance gathering. After arriving alone this time, he was joined by two others and left shortly afterwards.

Perhaps the most significant appearance at the NA commemoration, however, was that of Alexandre Cormier-Denis. Cormier-Denis, whom we’ve already talked about (and will have more to say about very soon. . .), had announced the week before that he would be taking part in the NA commemoration and invited his supporters to join him. Cormier-Denis, it should be remembered, is the main host of the far-right “reinformation” project Nomos.TV, which stands out for its ethnic nationalism and its profoundly racist and Islamophobic statements. His extreme positions led to him being disqualified from presenting a brief to a parliamentary commission on immigration in 2023.

To give you an idea, here’s a sample (from dozens of examples) of Cormier-Denis’s positions (on immigration, “rewilding,” the future of patriotism, etc.), which clearly align with those of Nouvelle Alliance, since they appear to constitute a mutual admiration society:

 

Cormier-Denis’s presence clearly shows that the social project proposed by Nouvelle Alliance resonates with the worst of Québec’s fascist and fascist-adjacent elements. François Gervais, president of Nouvelle Alliance, readily granted him a live interview lasting several minutes, in which we are treated to a confused and subjective description of the current period, in which antifascists, “Bolsheviks,” and progressive independentists are lumped together.

Anyone who thought that Nouvelle Alliance was above the racist rhetoric of Cormier-Denis and his acolytes was clearly wrong. Nomos and Nouvelle Alliance are one and the same movement.

Once the dreary NA speeches were over, their “commemoration,” which lasted at most twenty minutes—compared to an hour last year—turned into a sad and solemn little march (not a smile to be seen), at around 12:30.

Surrounded by dozens of cops, around fifty sympathizers of this groupuscule marched along Rachel and Saint-Denis Streets, toward Carré Saint-Louis, the starting point for the annual Grande marche des Patriotes, organized by the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste (SSJB). Along the way, the ethnonationalists, still led by their president, chanted reactionary and exclusionary slogans like “Patrie, Nation, Tradition,” as well as classics like “le Québec aux Québécois” [Québec for Quebeckers]. It’s worth noting that these slogans echo those of the French far right. For example, the neo-Nazis of the Comité du 9 Mai (C9M), who marched with impunity in Paris a few weeks ago, regularly chant, among other things, “Europe, Jeunesse, Révolution” [Europe, Youth, Revolution].

Same cadence, same delivery, same content: it’s clear that that’s no coincidence. In addition to its Québec precursors, NA is inspired by the worst of the European far right (identitarians, royalists, revolutionary nationalists, etc.), and that’s worth noting.

Meanwhile, the People’s Festival Against Fascism was in full swing, and a good time was had by young and old alike. More than five hundred hot dogs were served, and the games and music continued for several hours after Nouvelle Alliance’s departure.

Once again, we applaud the extraordinary effort of the organizers and congratulate everyone who chose to spend part of their Monday promoting and defending inclusive anti-racist values.

Many progressive pro-independence activists were also present, including members of the Front pour l’indépendance nationale (FIN) and OUI Québec, who held up a poster produced for the occasion: “L’indépendance du Québec sera antifasciste” [Québec’s independence will be anti-fascist].

 

At Carré Saint-Louis

Nouvelle Alliance’s misadventure wasn’t over. The fun continued when they arrived at Carré Saint-Louis at around 1:00 p.m. and attempted, as they have in the past, to parasitically attach themselves to the annual Grande marche des Patriotes organized by the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste. To their dismay, they were not welcome—for the second time that day!

Unlike last year, the SSJB had stopped to consider who it partnered with and made the judicious decision to inform Nouvelle Alliance’s leaders in advance that they would not be welcome this time. However, there’s what you say and there’s what you do, and on the ground, the SSJB leadership’s position did not prevail. Instead, the SSJB tried to negotiate a compromise, allowing Nouvelle Alliance to participate if they agreed to put away their banners and flags. Like last year, however, the NA militants failed to keep their word and did, in fact, display their colors as soon as the march got underway. Luckily, the presence of a small (but solid!) progressive pro-independence contingent put an end to that.

OUI Québec militants and comrades from the Front pour l’indépendance nationale (FIN) joined forces to prevent Nouvelle Alliance from joining the main march, sealing NA off. After a brief hesitation, during which the progressive independentists courageously held the line, despite being outnumbered by NA activists, the police intervened to separate the two sides by, quite literally, pushing the progressives out of the way.

The entire SSJB march took place without the toxic presence of Nouvelle Alliance, the latter marching a hundred metres behind, completely surrounded by the SPVM.

We’d like to congratulate OUI Québec and FIN for having the courage to stand up for their anti-fascist principles despite the pallid support of the march’s organizers. Over the years, we’ve often criticized the contemporary independence movement for its complacency toward the far-right groups that pollute its ranks. Let’s give credit where credit is due: OUI Québec’s recent strong stance offers hope for the future of the sovereigntist movement.

Unfortunately, not all sovereigntist groups are created equal, and the ludicrous presence of the Action socialiste de libération nationale (ASLN) at the Grande marche des Patriotes proves the point. The latter, whose rapprochement with Nouvelle Alliance we recently exposed, joined their new comrades for the duration of the march. Friendly handshakes were exchanged, and a few jarring red flags were seen amid Nouvelle Alliance’s sea of blue. This situation marks a turning point in relations between the ASLN and NA. Until recently, the two groups had kept their rapprochement under wraps, but now their alliance has come out into the light of day. Despite their ideological differences as to the ideal future for Québec, it would seem that their reactionary social positions provide sufficient common ground. The rest of the pro-independence camp be warned: support for either of these two groups is support for their conservative, anti-migrant, anti-diversity, anti-woke, and fundamentally reactionary social project.

 

Conclusion

As we have seen, Nouvelle Alliance has become increasingly visible within a far-right ecosystem, from which it foolishly believed it would gloriously emerge to infect the rest of the sovereigntist movement with its nauseating ideas.

It’s about time the mainstream media got its facts right, rather than buying into the mendacious propaganda being spewed by Québec’s far right. It’s a pity, for example, that newspapers readily publish the whimsical nattering of commentators who are either confused or acting in bad faith, such as secularism activist Nadia El-Mabrouk, who, in a letter published in Le Devoir on May 23, admits that she was unaware of Nouvelle Alliance (and, therefore, couldn’t possibly understand the nature of its project and its discourse) but, nevertheless, defends its presence in the broad sovereigntist family, as well as encouraging us to embrace dialogue and universal love.

Fortunately, the new generation of sovereigntists doesn’t share this blindness, as is evidenced by the position taken by OUI CVM, which loudly and clearly denounces this new reactionary alliance and everything it represents.

The struggle for Québec’s independence is a very complex issue, and anti-fascists of different stripes certainly disagree on the desirable outcome, but whatever happens in Québec in the future, we make this promise today: fascists will NEVER rule here.

 

Bonus tracks :

Leading Nouvelle Alliance activist Émille Coderre, whose problematic past we’ve discussed in the past, and whose entry in the PQ and the Bloc we’ve noted several times, makes a hand gesture widely seen as code in contemporary white supremacist movements. Way to go, guy!

The many moods of Franky Gervais…

 

 

[1]               [Tex Lecor, 1969]