SUMMARY
•The threat posed by al Qaeda, Daesh, and those inspired by their ideologies, has framed the way Canada has understood and labelled terrorism for almost twenty years, but the framework within which we compartmentalize and understand terrorists needs to adapt.
•There is a fluidity to the “terrorism” label and an inherent inequality in its application in Canada with symbolic, rhetorical, political, and cultural implications.
•Racism, Islamophobia, white supremacy, and how and who we frame as “other” or “terrorist” are all profoundly connected. Hate and prejudice are inflamed by racist attitudes, the espoused ideology of right-wing extremists, and the social polarization, distrust, and fear that have become uncomfortably mainstream.