The face of the hard-left in Colorado has evolved from silly, to odious and, now, to racist and dangerous. 

From the state Capitol to college campuses to local streets, euphemized “pro-Palestinian” rallies have created a sickening scene of largely privileged, and deeply ignorant, people parading around – at best – arguing for a moral equivalence between Hamas terrorists and the Israeli military. 

These are people from places such as Colorado State University, who were once triggered by the misuse of pronouns, who now have no problem associating themselves with the slaughter of innocents, including the beheading of men, the gang-rape of women and the incineration of live babies. 

Their thought is as deep as a beer coaster and their indiscriminate, cruel rhetoric the equivalent of a bear with a shotgun. 

One could say, “oh those crazy college kids.” But they are racists and anti-Semites. And must be called out for what they are. 

That is what elected officials on the left must do, and some have done, such as the estimable Sen. Dafna Michelson-Jenet who was born in Israel and Gov. Jared Polis, who is Jewish. 

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Leaders of Palestinian descent could do so, too. And this would provide a thunderclap of moral clarity, showing one knows the difference between a foreign policy debate and the no-nonsense condemnation of sadistic terrorism.

Enter Colorado Rep. Said Sharbini, whose father is Palestinian and has family living in the region. He appeared at a “pro-Palestinian” rally at the state Capitol. 

“I really just want to see a ceasefire,” he told Colorado Politics. “Let’s work towards a peaceful solution because these are real people suffering.”

A policy prescription so slight it is fortune-cookie worthy. 

Representative, here is a peaceful solution: Wipe Hamas off the face of the Earth, which then allows both Palestinians in Gaza and Israelis the ability to stop living in continual fear of terrorists who care nothing about innocent life. A ceasefire, in contrast, allows Hamas to continue to use Palestinian civilians as human shields and use a major Gaza hospital as a military base.

The rally featured the now ubiquitous chant, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” 

What exists now between the river and the sea? Israel.  It’s a call for erasing a sovereign country, the historical homeland of the Jews, from the map. 

“I’m not coming out here saying I hate Israel or anything like that,” he said.

Well, good for you.

I had never heard of Rep. Sharbini, who represents areas north of Denver, so I decided to look him up. 

One line on his website stood out.

“People want to feel safe, secure in their livelihood, and be happy.”

Does Rep. Sharbini of the anti-Israel rally believe that applies to Israelis?

Asked why he attended the rally, he told the media he wanted to let the protesters know “we are here backing them up.”

How about using your unique background, and passion for serving others, not to validate noxious views but to urge your ideological soulmates to embrace the better angels of their nature? That would be a profile in courage.

Rep. Sharbini does offer some condemnation of the Oct. 7 attacks telling one local radio station he is concerned about the “people of Israel who were murdered and stuff.” 

Imagine if a state legislator had turned up at a Klan rally on the Capitol steps and said all the cross burning, lynching “and stuff” are wrong and “it’s not like I hate Black people or anything,” but just wanted to support the nice energetic folks who are speaking their mind about the struggles of the white race. 

There would be a vacancy committee empaneled in a nanosecond.

Speaking the truth to one’s friends – truth that they don’t want to hear – is real leadership. Come to the head of the parade, steer it toward a better path, and don’t just follow the crowd. Being an elected official means people listen to you and vote for you because they respect you. That’s called political capital. 

Use it for hard things.  

Use it for such a time as this. 

The attacks of Oct. 7 created a bright line for all decent people, no matter their ethnicity, or political background. 

Let’s hope people of the left will come to their senses, join in one voice and loudly say on the behalf of terror victims: “Never again.”

Sean Duffy, a former deputy chief of staff to Gov. Bill Owens, is a communications and media relations strategist and ghostwriter based in the Denver area.