Dear Editor:
In his Oct. 9 op-ed entitled, "Spreading awareness, or attacking a religion?" Professor Gary Leupp finds a convenient target to vent his rage about the War in Iraq and the Bush administration in our Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week, a campus protest which will take place Oct. 22 to 26 on over 100 college campuses nationwide.
In doing so, Prof. Leupp recklessly slanders the thousands of students who will participate.
Contrary to Prof. Leupp's insinuations that "Islamo-Fascism" is an invention of American conservatives, the term was coined by Muslims in Algeria who were attacked by religious fanatics who now call themselves the al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb. They slaughtered nearly 200,000 Muslims in the years 1990 to 2002. In fact, Islamo-fascists have killed more Muslims than any other group.
Ignoring these facts, Leupp claims that Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week is "a calculated effort to vilify Islam in general, place Muslim student associations on the defensive and generate support for further U.S. military action in the Islamic world."
Prof. Leupp appears unaware or unconcerned that it is Islamic fascists who have attacked us; he seems equally oblivious to the fact that the main victims of the jihadists' crusade have been Muslims who don't go along with their program.
In all our literature and materials for the Week, we are careful to make a distinction between the Islamo-Fascists whose goal is the destruction of America and all "infidels" and the much larger number of peaceful, law-abiding Muslims who are unfairly tarnished by the same brush.
Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week is an effort to give moderate Muslims support against the forces that have hijacked their religion. It is also an effort to defend women, gays, Christians, Jews and Hindus who are under attack by the Islamic radicals and to raise student awareness about the nature of this threat.
Thus, a central theme of our protests is the silence of American feminists over the oppression of women in Islam and the absence of courses in women's studies departments about their plight.
Our literature for Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week urges students to involve other student organizations, including Muslim ones, in the events for Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week.
Yes, we want our military to defend us against the fanatical jihadists who blew up the World Trade Center and who have conducted more than 9,000 terrorist attacks since 9/11.
Apparently, Leupp does not.
I encourage Prof. Leupp to attend the Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week activities at Tufts. He might learn something.
David Horowitz
David Horowitz Freedom Center
