But they are wrong to say that Horowitz's presence here will be "harmful and divisive."
I don't agree with Horowitz's views, and, like Woods and Hashagen, his column on reparations that ran in The Daily Tar Heel last April made my skin crawl. But this is not a time to protest but to listen to the man for yourselves.
Wednesday is that chance. Horowitz said in a Nov. 14 DTH article that "he wants the opportunity to speak to further clarify his opinions, which has generated criticism across the country."
The campus should respect that and go hear him out. Also, it's important to point out that he plans to speak about UNC's response to the Sept. 11 attacks, not reparations.
And while you may not agree with what he has to say, you should at least go into the event with an open ear. Most of the campus probably never even heard of David Horowitz until last spring. But he is no newcomer to the political scene.
Surprisingly, during the 1960s, he was a leader of the New Left. However, he renounced his leftist beliefs and became a leading conservative voice. The campus should not shun the opportunity to confront him in person and intelligently address his beliefs.
There are going to be speakers brought to this campus who don't appeal to some or, like Horowitz, enrage many.
But that doesn't mean that Hashagen and Woods or others should criticize Student Congress or the College Republicans for bringing an averse opinion to this campus. God forbid that there should be free speech rights for conservatives on this campus.
Hashagen and Woods say in their column that it is "most offensive that members of Student Congress, who so self-righteously claim to represent students, chose to fund a speaker that offends so many students with his harmful rhetoric." They also call the College Republicans hypocrites for sponsoring Horowitz's visit while at the same time denouncing institutional racism.
