Nationalist conference moved to Burlington after two Hamilton venues cancelled bookings

A controversial nationalist conference that lost bookings at two Hamilton venues days before it was scheduled to begin ultimately found a home just down the QEW in Burlington.

DomCon 2026, organized by the Dominion Society of Canada, was held Saturday, Aug. 29, at The Atrium Banquet and Conference Centre, 5420 North Service Road.

CBC Hamilton reported seeing people wearing Dominion Society lanyards at the property, a nearly full parking lot, approximately 30 protesters and several Halton Regional Police officers outside.

While police were present and the conference was underway, the City of Burlington told CBC that it had not previously known the event was taking place in the city. The Atrium also said it had not known the Dominion Society's background when it accepted the reservation.

That creates a significant local question: how did an event that Hamilton officials, police and community organizations had been following for days relocate to a private Burlington venue without City Hall knowing it was coming?

Two Hamilton venues cancelled

DomCon had been advertised as an Aug. 29 conference in the Hamilton area. The Dominion Society promoted it as “Canada's premier nationalist conference,” with general-admission tickets priced at $150 and VIP tickets at $250.

Opposition grew in Hamilton during the weeks before the conference. Mayor Andrea Horwath urged businesses to understand who was behind the event before agreeing to host it, and the City said municipal facilities would not be made available.

Hamilton Police also encouraged private venues to consider the effect of the conference and its messaging on the broader community.

One Hamilton venue cancelled. On Aug. 27, two days before DomCon, Hamilton Police announced that a second local venue had cancelled an alternate booking that morning. Police said organizers appeared to still be looking for somewhere to hold the event.

By Saturday, it was taking place in Burlington.

Venues had been warned about last-minute bookings

A warning released before the conference makes the Burlington reservation particularly important.

On Aug. 25, the Hamilton Anti-Racism Resource Centre asked venues to scrutinize unusual or last-minute bookings for Aug. 29. The organization alleged that DomCon organizers might describe the event as a corporate or business gathering and said the name “Ridgeway Media” could be associated with an inquiry.

There is no public evidence that The Atrium reservation was made under that name, and the venue has not said it was deceived about who made the reservation.

The Atrium told CBC that it was unaware of the Dominion Society's background or a client's social or political views when it accepted the booking, and that its contract does not require clients to disclose those views.

The name used for the Burlington reservation, when it was made and how the event was described have not been publicly reported.

What is the Dominion Society?

The Dominion Society describes itself as a non-partisan nationalist organization focused on Canadian identity, heritage and immigration policy.

Its proposed policies go considerably further than reducing future immigration. On its website, the organization advocates what it calls “remigration,” including a 10-year suspension of permanent immigration, restrictions on birthright citizenship, reviews and revocations of permanent-resident status, and the elimination of several existing immigration programs.

The organization's own policy estimates that the resulting removals could total five million to nine million people.

It also proposes repealing the Canadian Multiculturalism Act and replacing it with legislation describing Canada as historically European, Christian and bicultural.

The Canadian Anti-Hate Network characterizes the Dominion Society as part of Canada's white-nationalist movement. The Dominion Society rejects the hate-group label, describes itself as Canadian nationalist and says its proposals are intended to preserve Canada's cultural continuity.

Advertised speaker did not enter Canada

One of the conference's advertised speakers was Austrian activist Martin Sellner, an international advocate of remigration.

Sellner said before DomCon that he could not board his flight to Canada. B'nai Brith Canada said it had provided information about Sellner to federal authorities and that he had been prevented from entering the country.

According to CBC's reporting from Burlington, Sellner appeared at the conference in a prerecorded address. Attendees could later be heard chanting “remigration now.”

Why Burlington may not have known

The contrast with Hamilton is striking. Hamilton officials, police and community groups discussed the conference publicly, contacted or warned businesses and followed the organizers' efforts to secure a location.

But The Atrium is privately owned. The reservation did not pass through Burlington's municipal-facility booking system, giving the City no automatic role in approving the rental.

The City issued a statement rejecting hatred, discrimination and intolerance and reiterated its commitment to being a welcoming community.

Halton police were already outside the venue Saturday. What remains unclear is when the service learned the event had moved, whether Hamilton Police shared information with Halton, and whether there was any reason for police to notify municipal officials before a lawful gathering at a private property.

The unanswered questions

The most important remaining questions concern the booking itself:

• When did The Atrium accept the reservation?
• What name was used for the booking?
• How was the event described to the venue?
• When did Halton police learn that DomCon had moved to Burlington?
• Did Hamilton Police warn Halton after the second Hamilton venue cancelled?

Those answers could explain how a conference that had become increasingly difficult to host in Hamilton was able to relocate a short drive down the QEW and proceed in Burlington.