An event held at the Royal Canadian Legion in Grande Prairie has prompted its national headquarters to ensure nothing similar happens in the future. On April 22nd, an Easter dinner was put on by the Soldiers of Odin Canada at the local hall.
Branches of the Soldiers of Odin across the country recently had their Facebook pages banned when the social media giant enforced its policy on extremist content and hate groups. However, Grande Prairie Legion past vice-president Frank Skolly told CBC News that he believes the local chapter isn’t a “racial group”.
In a Facebook post Friday, the Royal Canadian Legion Dominion Command said it doesn’t support or tolerate any group “whose views or actions are contrary to our values and those of our country,” adding that includes the Soldiers of Odin. While it notes that event ultimately fall under its National and Provincial Commands, it says it is going to work to avoid any future events like one in Grande Prairie
“We are taking action to prevent this sort of outcome in the future. We have a clear policy related to outlaw motorcycle groups and will develop a similar strong and explicit policy against any form of association with any group whose presence is not consistent with the Legion’s General By-Laws and our Articles of Faith.”
In a comment, it added that what led up to the Soldiers of Odin being allowed to rent their hall will be investigated to figure out what “corrective action must be taken.”
Prior to the Easter event, MyGrandePrairieNow.com made several attempts to get comment from the Grande Prairie Legion. It has reached out again since the National Headquarters’ post.