Police investigating after white supremacist rally held in Shawinigan, Que.

Provincial police are investigating after a white supremacist rally was held over the weekend in Shawinigan, Que., and is now being publicly denounced by several political leaders.

About 20 masked people held a banner that said “I remember a white Quebec” in French during the gathering on Saturday near the city’s cenotaph, in Quebec’s Mauricie region.

Benoit Richard, a spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), confirmed to CTV News on Monday that the force has opened an investigation into the event. The investigation aims to determine whether or not criminal charges should be laid.

Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette said she was “deeply shocked” by the rally and that she condemns it “in the strongest possible terms.”

“This is not the Quebec we stand for. This is not the Quebec we want,” she wrote in a post on her X account a day after the gathering.

The City of Shawinigan issued a statement condemning the rally, saying that organizers had not submitted a permit request or informed municipal authorities in advance.

Shawinigan Mayor Yves Lévesque said it was unacceptable for the group to hold their rally in the city, adding there was no indication the participants were from the community.

Other politicians expressed their condemnation of the event, including Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, who linked the gathering to so-called “active clubs” that have popped up in pockets of the country that use sports as a cover “to recruit and normalize extremism.”

“Public Safety Canada has clearly identified them as hate groups. Let’s stand united and strongly condemn this racism,” he wrote on social media.

Quebec Liberal Leader Charles Milliard also denounced the rally, saying it does not reflect the openness of Quebecers.

“The racist gathering that took place in Shawinigan this past weekend is shameful and deeply contrary to the values we uphold as a society,” said Marc Miller, a Quebec MP who serves as the Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, and Official Languages, in a post on X.

“It does not represent Quebec or Canada, and it has no place in our communities.”

With files from The Canadian Press