PQ leader’s pro-Israel, anti-Muslim racism must be challenged

The leader of the PQ is promoting an anti-Palestinian conspiracy theory. As Paul St-Pierre Plamondon spews absurd racism, Quebeckers are ever more critical of the Jewish supremacist state.

Recently Parti Québécois (PQ) head Paul St-Pierre Plamondon (PSPP) claimed the federal government is turning a blind eye to a Muslim Brotherhood takeover of Canada. In French the likely next premier of Quebec told an anti-Palestinian audience that Ottawa is ignoring the threat of the “Brotherhood” because it is “the agenda of the current government.” He said that group’s Islamization of Western societies “is a documented reality in several European countries,” but “the only reason it isn’t documented in Canada is because it’s the agenda of the current government.”

PSPP made these outlandish remarks during a town hall organized by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA). He was responding to a question from Léo Dupire, an activist with the far-right Québec Fier, who asked PSPP to acknowledge “there is a problem with mass Muslim immigration.”

After PSPP’s comments received significant attention the Senior Vice President of CIJA released a statement (in French) indirectly defending his anti-Muslim position. The Vice President of the official advocacy agent for Canada’s Jewish federations noted, “We reiterate that the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood is incompatible with the values ​​of our society, and this organization should be added to the list of terrorist entities. In our brief to the Pelchat-Rousseau Committee [on ‘secularism’ in Quebec], we had already pointed out that Islamist groups seek to impose their values ​​and interests within our society. It is important to remember that this infiltration is not only a problem for the Jewish community but attacks all of our shared values.”

As part of their bid to suppress solidarity with Palestinians, Zionists groups have been scaremongering about the dangers of the Muslim Brotherhood. B’nai Brith has a page headlined “Canada Must Designate Muslim Brotherhood Chapters as Terrorist Entities”. It asks supporters to “call on the Government of Canada to designate the Lebanese Muslim Brotherhood, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, and the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist entities under Canadian law, consistent with the actions taken by the United States in January 2026 and for the same underlying reasons.”

Their attacks against the Muslim Brotherhood stimulate/echo broader white supremacist forces. Far-right Christian/secular groups then take it a step further, suggesting the hundred-year-old organization is seeking to conquer Canada/Quebec.

As I left a demonstration opposing Israeli violence three weeks ago, I was queried about a purported Muslim Brotherhood “conquest” by Rebel News and Islamophobic social media influencer Natasha Montreal. My immediate reaction was to say there are thousands of foreign organizations that are a far more influential or threatening such as big US corporations like Meta or X, not to mention the US military, CIA, Israeli government, etc.

While one should never discount the impact financial incentives have in shaping people’s beliefs, they seem to truly believe the Brotherhood represents a serious threat. Imagine looking at the power dynamics/problems in Canada and thinking the Muslim Brotherhood is a serious concern. It makes the outlandish claims about the threat of Chinese interference seem reasonable.

The Muslim Brotherhood doesn’t run any government. After a member of the organization, Mohamed Morsi, won elections in Egypt he was ousted in a brutal coup 13 years ago. Hamas has historic ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, but they control little.

While it may be outlandish, this type of thinking is not without impact. At the start of the month the Quebec nationalist (though not independence oriented) CAQ government passed a bill that restricts group prayer in public spaces, including parks, without municipal authorization. They claim it is part of their bid to “secularize” Quebec.

The banning of public prayer was a reaction to anti-Palestinian media/activism by Rebel News, Natasha Montreal, National Post columnist Terry Newman and others who hyped up the prayers at weekly Montreal 4 Palestine protests over the past two and a half years. They framed the prayers as reflecting some type of Muslim takeover. When they took place in an Old Montreal park across from the famed Notre-Dame Basilica, the Zionist Islamophobes suggested the praying was “intimidation” and even began claiming any march that passed a church was a religious attack. (The “City of a Hundred Bell Towers”, Montreal was once said to have had more churches than any city outside of Rome so most downtown marches pass a church.)

While there may be outsized support for Muslim bashing in Quebec, Quebecers are also paradoxically more sympathetic to Palestinians and critical of Israel. A recent Léger poll found only 17 per cent of Quebec respondents view Israel favourably (64 per cent viewed Cuba favourably). Across Canada, 22 per cent expressed sympathy for Israel. Polls consistently show more sympathy for Palestinians in Quebec than elsewhere in the country. Still, the media/power structure makes it difficult to channel that sentiment into policy. By comparison anti-Muslim xenophobia gets far more political traction.

Interestingly, PSPP may be more vulnerable to a leftist push. He represents a relatively central, left-wing, Montreal riding. In the lead-up to the upcoming election he should be targeted in his riding with a concerted campaign challenging his racist, anti-Palestinian bile.

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