1. David Horowitz does not belong on campusDavid Horowitz does not belong on campus
Editor’s Note: David Horowitz has disputed some of the assertions made in this
column, which he believes are defamatory. In the interest of presenting all
viewpoints, an agreement was reached with Mr. Horowitz where he was allowed to
respond with equal space in a letter to the editor
[http://dailytrojan.com/2016/03/27/guilty-proven-innocent/] which printed in the
March 28 edition of the Daily Trojan.
The College Republicans will be hosting David Horowitz on Wednesday for an event
called “Stop the Jew Hatred: How Anti-Semitism is Perpetuated on College
Campuses.” Dubbed the godfather of the modern anti-Muslim movement by the
Southern Poverty Law Center, Horowitz is a conservative writer whose
fundamentalist views degrade black Americans, immigrants and Arabs. Because
incendiary rhetoric breeds intolerance against certain groups, it is irresponsible for
a student organization to bring in a speaker who foments religious and ethnic
hostilities.
By LIDA DIANTI
March 22, 2016 in Columns, Opinion, That's So Racist!
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2. Horowitz has a history of making unfounded and racist remarks. He has refuted the
prevalence of institutionalized racism in the United States. He claims that “some
blacks can’t seem to locate the ladder of opportunity within reach of others,” and in
doing so, dismisses the systems that actively oppress black Americans. He has
described the Black Lives Matter movement as “a racist hate group founded by a
core of radicals.”
On Fox News’ Neil Cavuto Show, he said: “Muslim Student Associations were created
by Hamas and funded by Saudi Arabia.” He also described Muslim students as
“Wahhabi Islamicists [sic]” who “basically support our enemies.” His assertion is
dangerously reductive and portrays all Muslims as extremists. His intent is to incite
Islamophobia and to criminalize Muslim students. This type of us-versus-them
mentality further divides people and reduces the complexities of Muslim identity.
In response to Israeli apartheid Week, Horowitz spoke to Brooklyn College using
defamatory language to vilify and dehumanize Palestinians.
“No people have shown themselves as so morally sick as the Palestinians,” Horowitz
said [https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/individual/david-
horowitz] . “No other people has sunk so low as the Palestinians.” This is a man who
openly and unabashedly slanders an entire population — on what merit can someone
who is racist toward one group condemn the prejudice and hatred of another?
Horowitz’s hate-mongering against Muslims, African-Americans and Palestinians is
unacceptable. People like Horowitz work to create spaces for the mass production of
ignorance to promote their own political agendas.
While anti-Semitism is certainly an issue that deserves attention, bringing in a
speaker like Horowitz creates an environment for inflammatory rhetoric rather than
academic discourse. In fact, selecting a man whose bigotry and ignorance is well-
known does a disservice to students who want to engage in a discussion about anti-
Semitism. It is important to note that anti-Semitism — prejudice or hatred of Jews —
is not the same as anti-Zionism, which opposes Israeli ethno-nationalism and the

3. occupation of the Palestinian territories. I say this specifically because the
description of the event is full of seditious language meant to divide the student
body into two parties: (1) those who believe in, as the Facebook event asserts
[https://www.facebook.com/events/1708105699474554/] , “‘apartheid walls’ which
disseminate mendacious Hamas propaganda” and bolster “lies about the Jewish state
spread by Palestinian terrorists and their campus allies” and (2) everyone else. This
type of rhetoric does little to facilitate an academic discussion but instead
perpetuates an extreme interpretation of anti-Zionism. Conflating anti-Semitism
with anti-Zionism is not only ignorant but also inaccurate.
There is very little respect for those who disagree with the Zionist cause. I find this
ironic, coming from a campus organization that constantly recycles the same two
arguments when faced with a difference of opinion — that the opposition to
inflammatory rhetoric is an attack on freedom of speech and that students who
enjoy left-wing privilege do not make room for intellectual diversity on campus. This
said, why is an opinion different from traditional conservatism met with
degradation? It seems as though the argument for intellectual diversity is only valid
when it backs the conservative cause.
What the College Republicans need to understand is that criticizing Horowitz is not
an attack on freedom of speech but rather on hate speech. According to the
American Bar Association
[http://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/initiatives_awards/students_in_
, hate speech is “speech that offends, threatens or insults groups, based on race,
color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, disability or other trait.”
Anti-Semitism has no place on our campus. Hatred against Jews is shameful and
dangerous. Rhetoric or hate crimes steeped in anti-Jewish sentiment are never to be
tolerated. All Jewish students should feel safe and protected at USC. In this regard, I
contend that the same treatment is due to people of other faiths. Anti-Semitism is
an important topic that needs to be addressed, but doing so does not give students a
free pass to slander Muslims and belittle Palestinian students and their allies. All

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students are entitled to their opinions on the Arab-Israeli conflict, and those same
students deserve to be treated with respect regardless of their political and ethnic
affiliations.
Lida Dianti is a junior majoring in international relations. Her column, “That’s So
Racist!,” runs Wednesdays.
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