Sarah Smellie Far-right and ultranationalist groups, including the Northern Guard, Proud Boys, as well as individuals wearing Soldiers of Odin patches, were among those gathered to protest the government's lawsuit settlement with Canadian torture victim Omar Khadr, at Nathan Philips Square in Toronto on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov December 16, 2020 - 10:10 AM ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - Researchers at the University of New Brunswick found an alarming recent spike in right-wing extremism in Atlantic Canada, and the data indicates the activity is increasing. Right-wing extremist activity surged in Atlantic Canada in 2016 and then climbed higher each consecutive year, according to UNB sociologist David Hofmann. His research team studied far-right activity in the region between 2000 and 2019 as part of a project led by Barbara Perry, director of the Centre on Hate, Bias and Extremism at Ontario Tech University.