David Horowitz was a radical leftist growing up, and played a big role in the new left in the 1960s and 1970s. Unlike most of his fellow radicals he came to his senses and has been one of the most effective fighters on the side of the good for some decades. In fact, one of his goals is to teach how to teach the polite right how to fight.

So instead of putting out academic papers against the jihad, he started an Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week that goes on twice a year at campuses around the country. The theme of October’s Week was stealth jihad, and it exposed the Muslim Student Association (MSA), which poses as a religious-cultural organization, for the radical Islamist group it is — a part of the Muslim Brotherhood. (“Islamist” refers to radical political Islam.)

One of the panels at the Restoration Weekend was about this project. Two very impressive students reported on what happened at their colleges — as usual, the radical Muslims make common cause with the left and try to discredit any criticism of radical Islam as hate speech.

Robert Spencer said the Week’s events exposed the contradiction between the MSA’s public stands and its private statements. He spoke at several campuses about the contradiction between Sharia law, which MSA supports, at least privately, and basic human rights. He introduced students to what Sharia is, and gave examples which shocked the students, such as the death penalty for leaving Islam. The MSA is very threatened by the Awareness Week and makes increasingly elaborate preparations for it, with counter-events and publications.

Robert brought up the issue of hate speech, which is something we are going to be hearing about increasingly under President Barack Obama. He said the Muslim students are constantly playing the hate speech card.  Every criticism of Islam is “hate speech” — even quotes from the Koran, or direct quotes from the materials of the MSA or the Muslim Brotherhood. It’s hateful to expose who they really are, you see.

He went on to talk about the larger threat of “hate speech” laws and rules. Muslim countries are trying to get any criticism of Islam or Muslim countries banned at the UN. So far the U.S. delegation has prevented this, but under Obama the policy could well be different. And we don’t know what is coming down the pike within this country. Canada and some European countries already ban some speech as “hate speech,” and we know how much Obama admires the way Europeans conduct their affairs. (I’m sure Ann and I could be brought up on charges of “hate speech” for what we write here, the definition of it is so broad.)

David Horowitz spoke briefly about the Islamo-Fascism Awareness Weeks. He said the activities, particularly the ads his group places in college newspapers, plant a seed in the students’ minds. During each of the Weeks they reach several million people this way. They are raising awareness and preparing the ground. When there is a terrorist attack, minds change overnight. He said the young conservatives he works with on the campuses are constantly attacked by the left, and have become much more sophisticated and less intimidated. If the two young men on the panel are typical, that’s certainly true. They were self-confident, good speakers, and understood the way the left operates.