The New Republic editor-in-chief Martin Peretz has publicly apologized for having written that Muslims are not worthy of the protections of the First Amendment. At the same time, though, he is standing by his statement that Muslims do not value human life — and adds that New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, who had criticized him, would agree. Alas, Kristof does not agree.
Peretz wrote last week: “But, frankly, Muslim life is cheap, most notably to Muslims. And among those Muslims led by the Imam Rauf there is hardly one who has raised a fuss about the routine and random bloodshed that defines their brotherhood. So, yes, I wonder whether I need honor these people and pretend that they are worthy of the privileges of the First Amendment which I have in my gut the sense that they will abuse.”
Kristof then wrote over the weekend: “Thus a prominent American commentator, in a magazine long associated with tolerance, ponders whether Muslims should be afforded constitutional freedoms. Is it possible to imagine the same kind of casual slur tossed off about blacks or Jews? How do America’s nearly seven million American Muslims feel when their faith is denounced as barbaric?”
Peretz responded today with a new post. Regarding the First Amendment claims, he said: “I wrote that, but I do not believe that. I do not think that any group or class of persons in the United States should be denied the protections of the First Amendment, not now, not ever. When I insist upon a sober recognition of the threats to our security, domestic threats included, I do not mean to suggest that the Constitution and its order of rights should in any way be abrogated. I would abhor such a prospect. I do not wish upon Muslim Americans the sorts of calumnies that were endured by Italian Americans in connection with Sacco and Vanzetti and Jewish Americans in connection with communism.”
However, he also added:
The other sentence is: “Frankly, Muslim life is cheap, especially for Muslims.” This is a statement of fact, not value. In his column, Kristof made this seem like a statement of bigotry. But on his blog, he notes that he concurs with it. “Peretz makes some points that are valid, and I agree with him that Muslims haven’t said nearly enough about those Muslims who kill other Muslims–in Kurdish areas, in Iraq, in Western Sahara, in Sudan, and so on.”
Kristof does not concur about this alleged agreement:
First, let me say that I welcome and respect the apology. It’s easy when we say dumb things to dig ourselves deeper, and very hard to apologize. So that was classy.
But I disagree with his suggestion that I concur that Muslim life is cheap.
Sure, many Muslims have killed other Muslims, and there hasn’t been enough outcry. But I’ve also seen Muslim aid workers risking their lives — in Darfur, for example, or in Gaza, or in Iraq, or in Pakistan, or in Afghanistan, or in Indonesia — in a way that we could all emulate. Those aid workers value human life so much they risk their own to save others. To insist that Muslims don’t value human life, because some terrorists don’t, is an insult to a billion Muslims around the world — and it’s also wrong.
