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[Help us preserve David’s legacy: HERE.]
One of the great Americans of our age, David Horowitz, died on Tuesday at the age of 86.
David Horowitz was one of the towering intellects and most perceptive thinkers of the late twentieth century and early twenty-first; he was also a man of unusual courage and remarkable vision. Though few people today realize it, David Horowitz was also one of the most influential people of our time, as he was one of the first leftists of any prominence to leave the leftist ranks and become a stalwart warrior for freedom.
Multitudes followed in his wake, often without realizing who it was who had blazed the trail for them. We are all in his debt not only for blazing that trial, but for the fact that after he established himself as a voice for freedom, sound values, and patriotism, David Horowitz spearheaded efforts to seize the intellectual and moral initiative from the left, and to articulate a vision for an America that really is the land of the free and the home of the brave.
After decades of the left’s cultural hegemony, David Horowitz played a massive role in establishing a large-scale movement of American patriots who refused to accept the claims of self-anointed “progressives” that their victory was inevitable, that they were on the right side of history, and that surrender was wiser than resistance. Today, that movement is broad-based, and one of its foremost exponents is in the Oval Office. Trump himself called Horowitz his “great friend.”
Stephen Miller, one of Donald Trump’s key advisers, was in his college days the president of the Duke chapter of David Horowitz’s Students for Academic Freedom; Miller’s uncompromising, unapologetic and deeply informed response to the left’s propaganda machine (that is, the establishment media) is redolent of Horowitz’s influence.
Even just a few years ago, Miller’s robustly pugnacious approach to the media propagandists would have been unthinkable. It was taken for granted that American conservatives let the left define the parameters of the public discourse and control the debate over any controverted issue. If the left denounced any voice for freedom on the right, which it did on a regular basis, establishment conservatives fell dutifully into line and denounced the target themselves.
These establishment conservatives were ignorant of or indifferent to the fact that Saul Alinsky, a man who had been a socialist activist like David Horowitz but who had never heeded the better angels of his nature and broken with the left, taught that radicals could defeat their foes by isolating a target, demonizing and destroying that target, and then proceeding onto the next target by first denouncing him for associating with the first target.
David Horowitz not only refused to play along with this game; he broke its power. At the David Horowitz Freedom Center’s flagship publication, Front Page Magazine, he did not let the left set the agenda; instead, he set his own. He didn’t shun figures who enunciated unpopular truths that the left wanted desperately to conceal; instead, he gave them a platform. He articulated an American conservatism that was not defensive, not reactive, not imitative of the left, but providing a vision for our nation’s future that is a genuine alternative to what the left has forced upon Americans for so long, and which preserves and strengthens what has made our nation great.
Nowadays, when patriots seek out pundits and political analysts who articulate what they themselves want for our country, and they encounter a strong and self-assured patriotic movement, this is to a great degree the fruit of the tireless labors of David Horowitz. When he and his longtime friend and colleague Peter Collier left Ramparts magazine, which was at the vanguard of the leftist movement in the late 1960s, and embraced the patriotism and love for freedom they had previously fought so energetically against, the American left lost two of its foremost thinkers; it has never recovered.
If free people prevail in this great struggle in which we are now engaged, and if an honest history of our turbulent age is someday written, David Horowitz will stand as one of those who shone forth most brightly when the darkness seemed all-pervasive and invincible.
It has been an immense honor for me personally to have known David for twenty years, and to have fought for freedom alongside him as part of the David Horowitz Freedom Center. At the Center, we are now determined to continue David’s fight for freedom and to keep on carrying the torch for freedom that he lit, until we prevail. May his memory be eternal.
A terrible loss. May he rest in eternal peace.
He has been a dear friend of our family for years. My mother “Dotti” and David were tight in political ties, from the white house to well known celebrities in Hollywood. David would attend my film premieres as a special guest.
Where are his services being held.
Let me know.
Thanks.
Sincerely,
Kel Garrett
Too sad for words. A greater man this nation has not seen….. May Hod have mercy on his soul. That you David Horowitz, although we never met, I’m a better person because of you.
God bless David Horowitz. I sure will miss him. What a fantastic person and body of work. He no doubt shines in heaven.
A beautiful tribite Mr. Spencer, for a most beloved and inspirational person whom we will never forget! The world is a better place thanks to David Horowitz!
I agree this is a great tribute.
However, I believe that the wokesters who try to raise the modern equivalent of red diaper babies (rainbow diaperhead babies (?)) will end up with a few who follow David’s path. The wokesters have a very low birthrate and that will limit this number in comparison with the red diaper baby boomer babies, but still there are bound to be children of wokesters who follow David’s trajectory while growing a thick skin.
His *Second Thoughts” changed the whole game. His narratives of his family’s political history opened countless eyes.
He’s on par with Thomas Sowell. (“Visions of the Anointed” is hardcore reading)
Goes without saying that Horowitz’s “Radical Son” is also required reading.
Don’t bother looking for it in High School libraries.
They needed to make room for “Earth in the Balance”, “A People’s History of the United States”, “I Rigoberta Menchu”, “Rouge Nation”, etc. (“Rouge Nation” was cited enthusiasticly by Osama Bin Laden himself.)
On par with Sowell and Whittaker Chambers too. Chambers’ “Witness” is a beautiful & exciting memoir, & he foretells the modern fight against the Left. The Left’s tactics & strategies are pretty much the same as they have been since the 1910s; they have had time to fine tune them and bring them to the digital age.
A great man! His voice will be missed. We must carry on his fight.
Hear, hear! 🍻
I was late to the party in reading Horowitz. What changed that, was leftist idiots nearly chocking on their own bile as they continually slandered him.
It inadvertently told me he was certainty worth a closer look.
(Hence, hyperventilating liberal fools wound up only introducing me to a brilliant mind. Thanks, dumbass liberals!)
No. I am crying. David was my favorite warrior against the left and Frontpagemag.com is a gem with wonderful journalists. We may never see his kind again. Thank you Mr. David Horowitz for your fighting spirit. Rest in peace, you earned it.
Even through this vale of tears, the show must go on! Rest in peace, dear brother.
RIP
David one of my favorite people
I am saddened by the loss of David. He brought so many critical issues to the forefront in the fight for our country. He will be deeply missed.
One of the greatest American heroes of modern times.
His works are a revelation, and will tell future generations more about our times than any other.
What a loss to the world. His writings and lectures have been instrumental in clarifying my political awakening from a progressive world view to one that is more rooted in reality. Back in the day I was a faithful reader of Ramparts. When I encountered Second Thoughts by Peter Collier and David Horowitz, perhaps in 1990, their own journeys left a strong impression on me. I’ve been a regular consumer of Front Page Mag since its inception, even in the last few years when David’s input dwindled considerably. Even though I never met him in person, the clarity of his thinking and the compassion in his soul always created me a connection that now feels like I’ve lost a friend. Rest in peace, David.
Hear Hear, Robert. A fitting tribute to an exceptional man with a towering intellect. He will be missed.
I had an old VCR and recorded David Horowitz in a college rebutting Islam and terrorists, the left, and easily he won the arguments. I showed my daughter when she was young so she would know a masterful truth teller at work. He will always be with us.
I got a chance to hear David Horowitz speak in my home town when he was giving speeches about his autobiography “Radical Son.” At that time I was working at the local newspaper alongside a bunch of leftists in the newsroom. One of those leftists interviewed Horowitz, but I doubt he ever read the book. I did get a libertarian editor to read it, which proved David’s point in the beginning of the book that the people who most needed to read it, refused. But after reading other books like “The Politics of Bad Faith” and “The Radical Mind” I now know WHY leftists generally refuse to read books like those that David wrote.
I can’t of two many other intellectual writers and leaders that have had the positive effect on me as David Horowitz.
It was an honor to work for David and the DHFC team for a few years. The mission brought together many great speakers, thinkers, and writers like you, Robert, to speak up for freedom and fight the radical Left agenda. Michael Finch is a fearless CEO and dedicated supporters have helped the mission thrive and grow. David helped so many people in their careers who now are in the national spotlight. He will be sorely missed. R.I.P. Condolences to his family.
David Horowitz escaped the demonic forces of totalitarian ideologies. He sounded the call of Freedom against institutionalized Marxism and the threats of Islamist radicals leaving a legacy grounded in the moral virtues of courage, self-control and justice.
Grace and peace to a true
How could such a brilliant, tested warrior have been sucked into joining the sinister globalists pushing for an Article V Convention of States? Maybe his illness clouded his judgement. He was extraordinary.
He fought the fights of today, alone decades ago…. He grew from his misled youth to be a True Warrior of Freedom… He’ll be missed…
He was an inspiration proving even leftists can see the light.
But only rarely.
Thank you for writing this. Even though I knew David was sick, it was shocking to read that he had died. I am glad he lived long enough to see President Trump back in the White House.
This truly great man will be very much missed by all those that met him and listened to him he brought the best conservatives together for meaningful discussions- lessons- lectures – and to socialize in friendship
It was an long-ago friend who turned me on to FrontPage Mag in the early 2000’s. I was helped along reading David’s work there and through his many books. AM talk radio brought voice to Mr. Horowitz and helped me find my voice.
I am saddened for his passing BUT, eternally grateful for his courage.
RIP.
It was an long-ago friend who turned me on to FrontPage Mag in the early 2000’s. I was helped along reading David’s work there and through his many books. AM talk radio brought voice to Mr. Horowitz and helped me find my voice.
I am saddened for his passing BUT, eternally grateful for his courage.
RIP.
David was a courageous and indefatigable giant of conservatism, but, his legacy lives on in the work of Robert Spencer, Daniel Greenfield, Lloyd Billingsley, Bruce Bawer and many others.
Although David’s passing is sad news, we should celebrate a life of conscience and moral probity that was well-lived.
My heart hurts.
I hope that someone here at FPM will continue to contribute to Discover the Networks.
….He was the first to expose the Black Panther’s murder of their secretary because she knew too much-wouldn’t cook the books or cover up for murder. David H’s book Destructive Generation to my mind was the key to his awakening that set all the wheels in motion. The Berkeley Left never forgave him ,and he never forgave them. Thankfully.
A fearless Giant. In the Jewish legend 36 just men “lamed vov-niks” carry the weight of the world on their shoulders.. David Horowitz was one .
I met David about 20 years ago. We had dinner, and he gave me a couple of his books he autographed. I remember him as intensely serious, with a profound intellect. And I think he had a subtle sense of humor that he rarely displayed. The man may be gone, but his writings survive.
Wonderful tribute by Robert Spencer. David was a brave, brilliant hero who left his mark on the world. We should rejoice that he lived and for what he accomplished; and not let that be overshadowed by his passing.
While we all knew that David was on borrowed time, the news of his passing comes with a very heavy heart. May God bless David Horowitz for all his sacrifice and suffering for the cause of freedom–a state of mind and existence originally intended by God. There is a special place in God’s heart for David Horowitz. Rest in Peace.
I am proud to have written, on publication of David’s “Radical Son” that it is “the first great autobiography of his generation.” Today I can say, it is yet to be equalled.
George Gilder
I first met David nearly forty years ago,fairly after his conversion from “ the dark side”. . I have to admit that I was at first skeptical of his motivations, but after hearing him talk about his life’s journey firing his book tour for RADICAL SON, I fully understood his journey and we bacame good friends who fat too seldom saw each other in person but at times engaged in long distance conversations about many issues of mutual interest. As a cancer survivor , I felt a close personal connection and spiritual,bond with him after reading his memoir describing the impact of his first successful bout with cancer. Of course, I am devastated that the disease returned and eventually led to his death. There were many things that I admired about David, among those things his brilliance, his prolific output as an author , his soitited defense of freedom and liberty reinforced by his intimate knowledge of its enemy – totalitarianism and the all,powerful state and his abilities both as a strategist and at least equally importantly as a tactician. But my fondest memories will be of the complete energu with which he approached every task and became totally immersed in his next project. And he combined this without a wonderful sense of humor and unquenchable optimism . He would never accept defeat, viewing any setback as temporary. And he inevitably accepted any challenge and yet had fun even while confronting overwhelming odds. My ,empties of David ate of a man of conviction , action and great joy.
RIP David Horowitz. Condolences to his family
Thank You David for speaking truth and standing up to the evil embedded in the Left.
You took on the giant and slayed it!
You will be missed.
In addition to being one of the foremost American intellectuals, David Horowitz was a courageous activist in the cause of freedom, and he was a real mensch, too!