How many campus protesters will turn terrorist themselves? Remember the ‘60s!

The chants and signs successful enactment of Hamas are becoming progressively dangerous.

They spell good beyond supporting the radical successful Gaza, oregon adjacent opposing Israel’s close to exist.

Some present support the murders and rapes committed by Hamas and request adjacent much unit against Israeli citizens.

Protesters chant, “We are Hamas,” “We emotion Hamas rockets,” ”Burn Tel Aviv to the ground” and “10,000 repetitions of October 7th.”

A person of the Columbia rioters precocious said “Zionists don’t merit to live” and that helium feels “very comfy calling for these radical to die” (though helium aboriginal apologized).

If Hamas is not defeated successful Gaza, it is apt that its coercion volition widen beyond the Middle East.

Already Hamas violent cells person been identified successful respective European cities.

It is astir definite that Hamas operatives are readying violent attacks successful the United States arsenic well.

It is not a span excessively acold to judge that radicals who assertion to beryllium successful Hamas, emotion their rockets and telephone for the decease of Israelis and Jews mightiness instrumentality the adjacent measurement and assistance Hamas operatives prosecute successful coercion against US targets.

They could beryllium recruited to assistance acquisition weapons, place targets and adjacent works bombs.

Something akin happened successful the precocious 1960s and aboriginal 1970s erstwhile American supporters of coercion became terrorists themselves, including students, professors and assemblage graduates.

They planted bombs, tried to stroke up service bases and recruitment centers and murdered constabulary officers and equipped guards.

For them, arsenic with today’s Hamas supporters, “any means possible” justifies their revolutionary ends.

Hamas volition bash the aforesaid if fixed the accidental successful this country.

The enactment betwixt advocacy, incitement and existent unit is not ever an casual 1 to draw, though the First Amendment demands that we bash so.

But communal consciousness besides demands we beryllium connected guard, lest these lines beryllium crossed invisibly oregon quietly, arsenic terrorists often do.

We whitethorn not beryllium capable to apprehension and prosecute radical who advocator murder, rape and rocket attacks, but we surely person the power, nether our constitution, to beryllium acrophobic and to instrumentality constitutionally permissible precautions against the anticipation that radicals who advocator unit whitethorn good prosecute successful it successful the not-too-distant future.

During the Vietnam War protests, law-enforcement authorities were caught disconnected guard.

They did not judge college-educated protesters from bully families would crook into terrorists.

But they did, and radical died.

Some of the terrorists went to prison. Others did not.

Some who went to situation for murder, similar Kathy Boudin, were really hired aft their merchandise by universities similar Columbia to thatch students. 

Others were befriended by the likes of Barack Obama.

The terrorists of the precocious 1960s and aboriginal 1970s were glorified by the media — and proceed to beryllium truthful successful films and books.

We indispensable ne'er glorify terrorists, for starters. Rather, we indispensable bash everything successful our powerfulness to forestall convulsive and hateful protesters from turning into murderous terrorists.

This indispensable each beryllium done accordant with the First Amendment.

But we indispensable beryllium prepared for existent unit from those who presently advocator violence.

Certainly, our instrumentality enforcement and quality agencies indispensable stay connected alert, monitoring societal media channels and, perhaps, looking for links between, say, protesters who perpetrate crimes and known panic groups and individuals.

Track backing sources, too. The lights are flashing; link the dots.

Most of those who contiguous enactment and respect Hamas volition not transverse the enactment from advocacy to terrorism, but immoderate apt will.

It is difficult, if not impossible, to separate the little unsafe erstwhile from the much unsafe latter, but we indispensable try, wrong the constraints of the Constitution.

No ideology tin disregard the beingness of a unsafe “fifth column” aiming to bash america harm astatine the behest of enemies similar Hamas.

When you ticker these agitators telephone for “Death to America” and praise Hamas rockets, remember: You whitethorn beryllium their adjacent target.

As the precocious Elie Wiesel reminded us, “It whitethorn commencement with the Jews, but it seldom ends with Jews.”

Alan Dershowitz is simply a prof emeritus astatine Harvard Law School and writer of “War Against the Jews: How to End Hamas Barbarism.” Andrew Stein, a Democrat, served arsenic New York City Council president, 1986-94.