Under the fluorescent glare of a martial arts gym, surrounded by echoes of children’s laughter and shuffled feet, a darker ritual sometimes unfolds—one that most community members never suspect.
Across Canada, white nationalist fight clubs called “active clubs” have embedded themselves within the ordinary fabric of city life. These groups, claiming to promote camaraderie and fitness, assemble in places where safety feels like a given: public parks and martial arts gyms, many of which cater to families and young athletes. Their presence is rarely overt. Faces hidden, locations blurred in online propaganda, members mask their true intentions behind the language of wellness and self-improvement.
The roots of these active clubs run deep, tracing through a network of far-right organizations and disbanded extremist groups. What began as online forums has spilled over into real-world training, with clubs like Hamilton’s Nationalist-13 and the cross-country Second Sons recruiting in plain sight. According to investigative efforts, these groups have used both private gyms and public fields to prepare for what they chillingly call a coming ‘race war.’ Their members, sometimes tied to notorious neo-Nazi collectives, use coded language and familiar local backdrops to evade detection.
Gym owners and community leaders, blindsided by the discovery of such groups in their facilities, voice frustration and condemnation. Kevin Mans, owner of Niagara BJJ in Welland, expressed shock at unwittingly hosting Second Sons members and swiftly banned them when alerted. The story is similar at other martial arts studios, where the ethos of inclusivity collides with the reality of manipulation and deceit. In many cases, park-goers and youth athletes share space—unknowingly—with extremists training nearby. The ability of these clubs to exploit the openness of public recreation spaces speaks to a cunning adaptability, one that should not be underestimated.
Experts caution that the threat is not only to physical safety but also to the fabric of local community life. The manipulation of mainstream spaces by white nationalist groups is a reminder that extremism often wears an ordinary face. Combating this infiltration demands vigilance not only from police and policymakers, but from all who call these parks and gyms their own.
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Fascist fight clubs are training for a ‘race war’ in parks and gyms. CBC tracked them
