The little known fascist roots of the Trudeau political dynasty in Canada

A lightly edited version of this post, written with Karuna Gopal, appeared on News18 here.

So the Indian government largely ignored the Canadian Prime Minister at the G20 meeting in New Delhi. And we Indians did make fun of him on social media. We admit that. A mature leader would have just brushed it off and gone home. And hired a better maintenance team for his official aircraft. So that he does not get stranded at international gatherings, after the party has ended and everyone has left. 

Unfortunately, Canada does not have such a leader. Instead, they have Justin Trudeau. So he goes home and accuses India of killing a Khalistani terrorist on Canadian soil. It turns into a huge diplomatic crisis. Of course, he cannot get any of Canada’s traditional allies to take his side. So Justin Trudeau is stranded, again. We wish it would be just as funny. But this time, it is not.

So why is Justin Trudeau supporting Khalistani terrorists? One reason is that he wants the extremist Sikh vote in Canada. His father Pierre Trudeau, also a Prime Minister of Canada, had protected the man who became the mastermind of the Air India Kanishka bombings. That cost 329 lives. But the crimes of the Trudeau political dynasty do not end there. One of the lesser known facts is how they were involved with some of the darkest chapters of history.

So why was Pierre Trudeau a member of an underground fascist society at the time of the Second World War? Why did he aspire to lead a ‘national revolution’ to create a breakaway state from Canada? A state that would be set up according to the ideals of Hitler and Mussolini. And why is there a painting of Mussolini even today at the Catholic Church in Montreal? That is the home ground of the Trudeaus. 

The first part of the answer relates to what was happening in France in the 1940s. The Trudeaus are from Quebec, descendants of French speaking colonizers in Canada. France gave up the province to the larger British controlled territories in North America in 1763. But its people kept close ties with the politics and culture of France. In June 1940, France signed an armistice with Nazi Germany after just six weeks of fighting. A new government was set up under Marshal Petain, a hero of France from the First World War. Petain set about creating a ‘national revolution’ in France, similar to what had happened in Italy under Mussolini. And in Germany under Hitler. This was exactly the aim of the fascist society that Pierre Trudeau set up in Canada. At the time, the French empire covered much of northern and equatorial Africa. It stretched across the Indian Ocean, from Cambodia in the east to Madagascar in the west. Most French colonists around the world rallied in favor of the pro-Nazi government of Marshal Petain. So did Pierre Trudeau.

The second part of this relates to religion. The French and the Italians are Catholics, while the British are not. Since the 1920s, the Catholic Church had backed the fascist movement in Italy. In 1929, Mussolini gave the Pope control over Vatican City. In return, the Pope referred to Mussolini as a messenger of God. In 1933, the Catholic Party voted for Hitler to become dictator of Germany. Soon after, the Vatican signed a deal with the Nazi government. The Pope endorsed Italy’s genocidal war in Ethiopia in 1935, in which over 150,000 were killed. The Church also became the driving force behind the wave of anti-Jewish laws in Europe in the 1930s. When Petain formed a pro-Nazi government in France in 1940, the Pope congratulated him for the “fortunate revival of religious life” in that country. The Catholic Church in Quebec took a similar approach.

And so it was that Pierre Trudeau and his associates wanted to form a breakaway state that would be Catholic, French and authoritarian. They called themselves “The X.” Or in French, “Les X,” or simply LX. The manifesto of LX began with a call for national revolution. The words were chosen to be the same as those of Petain in France, calling for a nation that would be purged of Jews. The next point in the manifesto was for the nation to be “Catholic and French.” Democracy would be abolished. Instead, the authoritarian state would guarantee freedoms of the people. This may sound bizarre. But that is how the Church saw it back then. Trudeau’s manifesto ended with the words “God approves.”

Armed with this manifesto, Pierre Trudeau set out gathering members for his underground organization LX. They made detailed plans for the overthrow of the government, the capture of police and fire stations. All in waiting for the day when the fascist movement would reach Canadian shores. At his peak in 1942, Trudeau made passionate speeches against those recruiting soldiers for the war against Nazi Germany. They were traitors, Trudeau said. And they would have to be impaled alive.

Only in 1944 did Trudeau begin to tone down his rhetoric. By then, the war had turned decisively against Nazi Germany. The Americans had landed in France. They had dismissed the Petain government. It was time for Trudeau and his band of fascists to give up their plans. And join the winning side. In fact, Trudeau himself moved to the United States around this time.

One would have to wonder here. Why did their history not hurt the Trudeaus politically? Because it is about who writes history. Most of these details about Pierre Trudeau came out only in 2006. It was in a biography published by Max and Monique Nemni, retired historians from the University of Laval in Canada. In other words, the story of Pierre Trudeau’s fascist past remained hidden until well after his death. But the collaboration between the Catholic Church and Mussolini’s fascists had always been well known. So were the attitudes of the pro-Nazi Petain regime in France. And its sympathizers among French colonists around the world. That includes Quebec in the 1940s. Pierre Trudeau was a member of the Quebec political elite, known for its support of fascism at the time. But nobody ever wanted to know more about Pierre Trudeau’s fascist links. Even after the 2006 biography appeared.

Why? Because it does not fit the narrative. The Trudeau political dynasty are liberal icons. Looking into their past would make powerful people uncomfortable. And so, the media obeys. The so-called historians obey. Because history is a weapon. Words like “fascist” have become weapons. They are used as labels against anyone that liberals do not like. 

When the West talks to us today, we Indians need to remember this always. Today they throw all sorts of accusations at India. One should remember that they do not just speak through official channels. They also speak through puppets in the media, think tanks, NGOs and academia. Sometimes they say that India has less academic freedom than Taliban ruled Afghanistan. Sometimes that India is more dangerous for journalists than North Korea. It does not have to make sense. They called India an ‘electoral autocracy.’ What does that even mean? Nothing. And it does not matter. Now, Justin Trudeau makes even more wild allegations against India. 

Why are they so angry with us? Because the new India will not give in. Whether it be the war in Ukraine, or dealing with Khalistani terrorists. The new India will never give up on its interests.