Canadian authorities have reported that at least 130 citizens are involved extremist activities abroad, with 30 in Syria alone. In Calgary, five youths who attended the 8th & 8th Musallah mosque are known to have joined the Islamic State, leading the Canadian media to emphatically label Calgary a hotbed of terrorism.

In response to two so-called "lone wolf" attacks last year, Canada's Conservative government introduced controversial anti-terrorism legislation, which some fear will only further marginalizethe country's Muslim population. VICE founder Suroosh Alvi traveled to Calgary to investigate allegations of radicalization among the city's Muslim youth, speaking with the imam of the 8th & 8th Musallah, as well as the mother of Damian Clairmont, who died in Syria fighting for the Islamic State.