David Horowitz, the Jewish conservative writer and founder of FrontPage magazine, in addition to an eponymous freedom center, died on April 29. He was 86 years old.
Known for his 1998 memoir Radical Son: A Generational Odyssey, about his journey from “red-diaper baby” born to Communist parents to conservative activist, and for his assertive responses to opponents on the left, Horowitz drew widespread accolades from the many who admired him, including those in government.
Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel and former Arkansas governor, wrote that Horowitz’s death was “heartbreaking news.”
“David was one of the most brilliant minds in the conservative movement and came to his convictions by intellectual honesty,” the envoy stated. “We will miss you, my friend.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) wrote that Horowitz was “a friend and an extraordinary voice for liberty” and that as a “former Marxist, he powerfully understood the evil of the radical left. He loved America, and he was utterly unafraid to speak the truth.”
The pro-Israel Dutch politician Geert Wilders called Horowitz a “dear friend and ally.”
“David was an American hero, a giant, a warrior for freedom, one of the bravest patriots I have ever met,” Wilders stated.
Yoram Hazony, co-founder and president of the Herzl Institute in Jerusalem and a leader of national conservatism, wrote that Horowitz’s memoir “is still one of the most gripping autobiographical works I’ve ever read” and “no book is as good at describing what the left really is.”
Alana Newhouse, editor-in-chief of Tablet magazine, wrote that “whatever your politics, if you haven’t read Radical Son, you do not understand something central about America.”
‘A true original’
Horowitz also drew praise from within the Trump administration. “David inspired generations of bold conservative leaders, building a lasting legacy,” stated Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy and U.S. homeland security advisor.
“He selflessly gave his time, energy, support and mentorship to young patriots fighting a corrupt and oppressive system,” Miller said. “I will always be grateful to him and will never forget his kindness.”
Writing on a personal social-media account, Harmeet Dhillon, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights, said she met Horowitz when she was a “young campus activist” at Dartmouth College and he was an invited speaker.
“We became friends, and he asked me to write a chapter in his book, Second Thoughts on the 60s,” she stated. “Decades later, the Berkeley College Republicans invited him to speak on campus, but Berkeley wouldn’t let him, and I sued Berkeley over it and won. We maintained a legal and personal relationship after that for years.”
“David was a true original, a man unafraid of the woke mob and deeply committed to freedom of thought and speech,” Dhillon stated.
Horowitz was “a radical leftist turned conservative firebrand,” who “never lost his appetite for combat—or his belief in the power of ideas to shape history,” said Brian Anderson, the editor of City Journal. He added that Horowitz’s memoir “remains one of the most compelling political memoirs of the last few decades.”
‘Would I condemn Hamas?’
After Horowitz’s death, video footage recirculated on social media of him engaging at an event with an anti-Israel student during a question-and-answer period. “Will you condemn Hamas, here and now?” he asks the student.
“I’m sorry, what?” asks the student, clad in a headscarf and a keffiyeh. “Will you condemn Hamas?” he asks again, pronouncing each word with more emphasis.
“Would I condemn Hamas?” she says.
“As a terrorist organization. As a genocidal organization,” Horowitz replies.
“Are you asking me to put myself on a cross?” she asks.
“So you won’t,” Horowitz says. The student tells him that she will be arrested by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security if she says that she supports Hamas.
“If you don’t condemn Hamas, obviously, you support it,” he says with a smirk and an eye roll. “Case closed.”
Horowitz told the crowd that he had the same experience with the head of the Muslim Student Association at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He asked the student if he would condemn Hezbollah, and the student said that was too complicated a question to answer “yes” or “no.”
“So I said, ‘OK. I’ll put it to you this way. I’m a Jew. The head of Hezbollah has said that he hopes that we will gather in Israel, so that he doesn’t have to hunt us down globally. For or against it?” Horowitz told the audience.
“For it,” the student in the keffiyeh said into the microphone.
“Thank you,” Horowitz said. “Thank you for coming and showing everybody what’s here. And you’re wearing a terrorist neckerchief.”