Opinion: Editorial
Welcome back, Mr. Horowitz
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Of all the great traditions enrooted at the University of Wisconsin, it is the timeless pledge to “ever encourage that fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found” that students ought to be most proud of — and most eager to defend.
The editors at The Badger Herald have for decades committed themselves to a profound respect for free speech and academic freedom, and have often maintained an eye toward encouraging and protecting controversial and marginalized political discourse. It is a responsibility we are proud to embrace.
Perhaps the greatest example of that spirit came in February 2001, when this newspaper accepted a paid advertisement from conservative author David Horowitz that listed 10 arguments against reparations for slavery. Some on campus loudly decried the advertisement and, by extension, The Badger Herald as “racist.” The decision to print the ad and the subsequent refusal to apologize cost the Herald a great deal of grief and antagonism from many student organizations, including a substantial loss of advertising revenue.
The still-controversial Mr. Horowitz returns to campus today and, as before, we welcome his unabashed critique of academia, political correctness and the American left. Sponsored by the UW College Republicans, Mr. Horowitz will take the stage at the Memorial Union Theatre at 7:30 tonight and is expected to speak primarily about his Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week. We are hopeful that there will be a large crowd on hand — many of whom will surely disagree with Mr. Horowitz — and we are hopeful that Mr. Horowitz’s right to speak is respected.
We have reason to believe, though, that this may not be the case.
“We’re told that we’re supposed to respect David Horowitz and let him speak, but this university calls the police on an anti-war activist for going into an informal session with Halliburton,” said UW senior Chris Dols, a member of the Campus Antiwar Network, according to an Oct. 11 Badger Herald news article. “There’s a double standard. That’s not free speech. We’re against David Horowitz speaking here and we’re going to find ways to show that.”
As long as CAN’s “ways to show that” do not limit Mr. Horowitz’s ability to deliver his lecture to all who want to hear it, that’s OK. Their opposition, of course, is part of a healthy discussion, and we encourage their presence as much as we encourage Mr. Horowitz’s. We praised CAN for effectively conveying their message while at the same time respecting Halliburton’s First Amendment rights at an engineering recruitment fair on campus last month, and we hope Mr. Dols and his fellow students show the same restraint tonight.
Only then can that “fearless sifting and winnowing” commence.
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Unfortunately, David Horowitz doesn’t believe in the right of students to sift and winnow, launching a crusade to exterminate any traces of leftism from academia. Aside from his failure to recognize the shear fact that many professors are liberal because of their extensive education, and that any search for progress inherent to the academy is generally rooted in liberalism and the enlightenment (instead of reactionary conservatism).
Perhaps Mr. Horowitz should have the right to speak, but this should not come at the expense of that same freedom of others. No one should ever be free to restrict the freedoms of others, especially in this example of academic McCarthyism.
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I sincerely hope that CAN (and/or any other organzations) will not disrupt Mr. Horowitz while he is speaking. While I believe that Mr. Horowitz and his anti-Islam campaign are truly detrimental to progress in our world today, I believe that not affording him a right to speak on our campus would be even more damaging.
There are means and places of protest that will not interfere with his freedom of speech, and I think we should be taking advantage of those.
Please join the College Democrats, Black Student Union, Multicultural Students Coalition, and International Socialist Organization in a protest BEFORE the lecture OUTSIDE the Memorial Union. Then please attend the lecture, free speech does not apply just to the people we agree with.
Forward.
-Oliver Kiefer Chair, College Democrats of Madison
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Horowitz is best left ignored. He’s a joke, and no amount of protest will change that status. Suck it, Dave, no one’s listening.
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Besides, if anyone does disrupt Horowitz, they’ll just be giving the man exactly what he wants. He’s not coming to spread “Islamo-fascism” “awareness,” he’s fishing for the attention he’d get by being shouted down. The man’s an obnoxious attention whore.
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Since when is CAN allowed to take the lead in opposition to Islamo-blah blah blah blah week? Last time I checked, the event is against Muslims and the MSA’s emails to students have specifically stated to let the pap smear speak.
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brainwashed lib forum is now closed
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“No one’s listening”?… except over 100 campuses nationwide.
Meanwhile, “tolerant” Leftists smashed a woman in the face with a brick in Georgetown this weekend— letting that mask slip again.
Own it, you Marxist-fascists.
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“launching a crusade to exterminate any traces of leftism from academia”
That’s just the biggest canard I seen recently. First, ther is no way that leftism will ever be exterminated (better luck with mosquitoes or cockraches). Second, he’s only asking that some little bit of rightism be allowed into academia, like maybe perhaps a single Republican professor here or there, and that leftist professors not grade students based on their adherence to the Party line.
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Chris Dols and his crew of activists clearly know almost nothing about freedom of speech, and wouldn’t care if they did. The rush of having shouted somebody down is just too much fun to worry about things like constitutional rights.
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Does your arm ever get tired patting yourself on the back, BH?
The Badger Herald: Demonstrating our love for free speech by printing racist ads since 1969.
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Is calling people degrading names because they disagree with ypur point of view a pre-school thing or a liberal theing?
Trick question, it’s both. Grow up people.