Let’s face it: War is never wanted, desired or even deserved by any country. However, war is an unpopular reality that America, Israel and the West must face today because extreme radical groups using the peaceful religion of Islam as a tool to wage genocide against “non-Muslims” have declared war on us, a Holy War. And like it or not, this is the reality.
So why don’t all Americans and their allies at the University support National Radical Islam Awareness Week? Why isn’t this campus appalled by the jihad – this Holy War that has been declared against the West? The anti-war protesters, the liberal professors, the Democrats – who claim to be anti-fascist, anti-sexist and progressive – why are they not disgusted by the sanctifying of murderers as holy “martyrs” when Muslim terrorists kill innocent Americans, Christians and Jews? Why aren’t these people outraged by the genital mutilation of women in countries like Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen, or the sanctioning of wife-bjavascript:replaceBreaksWithP();eating under Islamic law in Pakistan and other Islamic states? Across America, Women’s Studies programs will teach students about the oppression of women in Peoria and Ann Arbor, but not in Teheran or Riyadh. Why not?
The fact is that so many students are ignorant of these horrific realities and trained to believe that the Bush administration is the reason America is fighting in the Middle East. Yes, Bush put troops in the Middle East. And yes, many would love to be at home with their families and wish they did not have to fight this war. However, I ask you this: Did the New Yorkers on Sept. 11, 2001 wish for the desecration of their city? Did the morning commuters riding the London subways on July 7, 2005 desire for their train to be destroyed? Do Israelis want to fear leaving their home in terror that they might not ever come back?
National Islam Awareness Week is a way to educate students about the genocidal agendas of the global jihadists and the fact that these radical ideas are far more mainstream in the Muslim world today than most Americans are willing to believe. It is also to remind students not to forget about Sept. 11, to remember what our troops are fighting for: Our freedom, the same freedom that allows you to learn at this university without the fear of attack because of who you are.
Our group, the Young Americans for Freedom, is expecting and has had protests against our views. However, we are familiar with the way the Left wages its political wars on conservative students. If someone happens to disagree with its position on racial issues – if one believes, for example, that government-enforced racial preferences are misguided or immoral – the Left will denounce that person as a “racist.” The Left’s only logic is emotional, and the character of that emotion is hatred – hatred for those who want to raise awareness of the threats we face from radical Islam. This hatred has only one purpose: to silence those who oppose the jihad.
We see members of our generation ready to put their lives on the line to defend our freedoms. We know that this war is being waged at home as well, and we will not let our brothers and sisters in uniform shoulder the burden alone.
-This viewpoint was written on behalf of the University’s chapter of the Young Americans for Freedom.