Edmonton rapper-turned-Liberal candidate turfed for praising Hamas, Hezbollah
Rod Loyola was removed by the Liberals for his 2009 comments praising Palestinian terror groups
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OTTAWA — Just 10 days after resigning his seat in the Alberta legislature to run for the federal Liberals, a three-term NDP MLA has been booted from the ballot for praising Palestinian terrorists during a 2009 political rally.
Rod Loyola, who until Thursday was the federal Liberal candidate in Edmonton Gateway, was recorded praising Hamas and Hezbollah during a videotaped rap session at an anti-NATO protest in Edmonton.
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“Organizations like Hezbollah, and Hamas, really are trying to stand up for their people, and that needs to be recognized,” Loyola said before his performance as one half of his rap group, The People’s Poets.
“These are movements for national liberation, not terrorists.”
Just as the music starts, Loyola’s hype man starts asking the crowd, “Who’s the terrorist, huh? Not us? Not here today,” before dropping rhymes.
After numerous requests for comment from the National Post, which broke the story, a Liberal campaign spokesperson confirmed Loyola was no longer their candidate in the riding.
The Toronto Sun has reached out to Loyola for comment.
Loyola courted controversy throughout his political career and his radical views were no secret.
He was part of Rachel Notley’s NDP “Orange Wave” that formed Alberta’s government in 2015.
Born Catholic, he “reverted” to Islam two years after his election — a move he said in a 2022 interview was inspired by American revolutionary Malcolm X and the Black Nationalist organization Nation of Islam. His family fled Chile to Canada in 1976 to escape Augusto Pinochet’s rule
Loyola’s long-time public advocacy of Venezuelan despot Hugo Chavez and Cuban dictator Fidel Castro garnered him controversy leading up to his 2015 election win — something he complained about during a 2021 podcast in which he claimed his admiration for Latin American dictators garnered unwarranted criticism.
In 2017, Loyola participated in an anti-Israel rally at the Alberta legislature, part of a protest decrying the decision by the United States to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
“The human rights atrocities that continue to happen there … should be front and centre,” said Loyola, who also told reporters of his past involvement in the Palestine Solidarity Network.
“It’s important that we seek a peace process in the Middle East … and do what we can to support that.”
Loyola is the sixth Liberal candidate to step down so far this campaign — with ousters that included former Markham Unionville MP Paul Chiang, Trois-Rivieres candidate Luc Galvani for an undisclosed DUI arrest, and Thomas Keeper in Calgary for not disclosing a stayed 2005 domestic assault charge.
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