David Horowitz, political activism icon, dies at age 86

The world lost David Joel Horowitz on Tuesday, a monumental figure in American conservative activism whose life was marked by an extraordinary ideological transformation and a tireless struggle for individual freedom and truth.

Born on January 10, 1939 in Queens, New York, Horowitz passed away at the age of 86 after a prolonged battle with cancer, leaving a legacy that will live on in political thought and the defense of America's founding principles.

The son of Jewish communist teachers, Horowitz began his career as one of the leading intellectuals of the New Left in the 1960s. During that era, his influence eclipsed figures such as Noam Chomsky.

Working at Ramparts magazine, he helped reorient Marxism toward groups such as feminists and African-Americans, whom he considered the new revolutionary vanguard, away from the working class.

He collaborated closely with leaders such as Huey P. Newton, of the Black Panthers.

However, a traumatic event marked a turning point: the 1974 murder of his colleague Betty Van Patter, a crime Horowitz attributed to the Black Panthers, with whom he himself had connected her. This event, later confirmed, triggered his estrangement from the radical left.

Horowitz's ideological turn, completed in the 1980s, was starkly chronicled in his 1996 autobiography, Radical Son: A Generational Odyssey. In one memorable passage, he describes a moment of introspection in a bookstore, when, contemplating the possibility that Marxism was a lie, he felt a vertigo that shook the foundations of his identity.

This process, which he termed a "coming home," led him to embrace the principles of private property, individual rights and a limited state championed by America's founders.

As founder of the David Horowitz Freedom Center, editor of FrontPage Magazine and creator of Discover the Networks, Horowitz devoted decades to debunking the fallacies of the progressive left.

His incisive pen tackled such topics as Islamism, antisemitism, the defense of Israel and the suppression of academic freedom in universities, anticipating the current debate on the woke movement.

His "academic bill of rights" sought to combat ideological hegemony in academia, a problem that resonated years later in actions such as those of President Donald Trump against institutions like Columbia and Harvard.

Horowitz profoundly influenced generations of conservative intellectuals, including Stephen Miller, a key figure in the Trump Administration.

During a period of low media visibility for the American right, his tireless work kept the flame of conservatism alive. Until his last days, Horowitz remained active: he finished his last book shortly before his death and published an article just two weeks ago.

The David Horowitz Freedom Center announced his passing on its X account:“On behalf of the David Horowitz Freedom Center, we are very saddened to announce the passing of the Center’s founder, David Horowitz. After a lengthy battle with cancer, David passed yesterday at the age of 86. David Horowitz, 1939-2025. Requiescat in pace.”

Horowitz's legacy, defined by his courage to question dogma and his commitment to truth, will continue to inspire those who champion freedom and intellectual rigor.

His life, a journey from Marxism to conservatism, is a testament to the power of ideas and the capacity for personal transformation.