“We have no part in the organization of this event,” it read.

Paralovos said he wasn’t surprised the venue cancelled the booking, noting the violent imagery used in the poster, but he said he was disappointed. He said he’s reached out to Guelph police and the mayor and “taken all necessary steps to ensure safety” for Friday’s event to go ahead.

“We can’t cower to threats of violence. We can’t. We have to speak” he said, adding free speech is a cornerstone of democracy.

Around 100 tickets have been sold and he said it’s unlikely ticket sales will continue under threat of violence. A video of the interview is to be posted on YouTube afterwards.

Identifying the protesters as “Antifa,” Paralovos said he was concerned groups of people would be bused in from Hamilton and Toronto to oppose the event. “This group has a history of violence and vandalism and property damage and I don’t want violence in Guelph. Period.”

Gibson said he didn't see the poster as violent, but was created in a similar style to anti-propaganda posters seen during the Second World War.

"It is my view that the rhetoric of Max Bernier and the People's Party of Canada is much greater threat to public safety than a barely-circulated online poster."

Gibson said history is riddled with marginalized communities who have been denied a platform to speak. In light of this, "I don't think that people who are actively promoting hatred or bigotry should be afforded that privilege that so many marginalized communities do not have.

"I don't think he's entitled to the venues in our community if community members are opposed to his presence," he said.

A rally against fascism has been scheduled to take place at Guelph city hall at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, promoted online by the United Against Oppression group of Guelph. Gibson said some of those in attendance may end up wearing face masks to hide their identity.

The PPC is widely viewed as aiming further right of the Conservative party and has been criticized for being anti-immigrant and espousing anti-globalist rhetoric. Last year, when Bernier launched the People’s Party of Canada, he denounced Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “extreme multiculturalism and cult of diversity” and declared “the death of political correctness in Canada.”

Bernier was also to have a speaking event at a café in Cambridge on Friday afternoon, but these plans changed when the venue cancelled its booking over fears of violent protest. David Haskell, the PPC’s candidate in Cambridge, told the Times on Tuesday that a resident made an undisclosed venue available for the PPC leader after Blackwing Coffee Bar pulled out.