Harvard University senior Zayed Yasin says his upcoming graduation-day speech, titled ''The American Jihad,'' will be a call to action, not a call to war.

But Yasin's planned use of the term jihad - one of the most controversial words in any language - has triggered a dispute over the limits of free speech even within a bastion of intellectual freedom. The biomedical engineering major and former president of the Harvard Islamic Society has already received at least one death threat. And students are circulating a petition calling on Harvard officials to let them review Yasin's speech before he delivers it on June 6.

Yasin, a 22-year-old native of Scituate, said he simply wants to reclaim the positive definition of jihad, which can mean a spiritual struggle in addition to the more familiar meaning, holy war.

''In the Muslim tradition, jihad represents a struggle to do the right thing,'' he said. ''This is not a speech about jihad as war, or 9/11, or Israel and Palestine, or politics. I want to use the idea of struggle to say that we, as graduating seniors from Harvard, who have been incredibly blessed, have a duty and responsibility to the world to struggle against injustices, and to struggle for social justice.''

But what makes critics nervous is the fact that so few people have read Yasin's planned remarks. A university commencement committee awarded Yasin the coveted speaking honor on the strength of the writing and ideas in ''American Jihad.'' However, other than committee members and some others who have helped Yasin revise the speech somewhat, no one else has read it.

Last Friday, a handful of Harvard seniors launched a petition drive urging Harvard officials to allow students to read and assess the remarks before Yasin delivers them. They also called on Yasin to publicly ''condemn violence in the name of jihad,'' and are encouraging alumni and donors to voice concern to Harvard leaders about the speech.

''In the wake of the events of September 11th, which have been described as part of a jihad against America, it is essential that well-meaning members of all faiths condemn the use of violent jihad anywhere in the world,'' the students' petition reads. ''Unfortunately, Mr. Yasin's own public actions and statements undermine his ability to deliver this important message on peaceful Jihad.''

Some of the petitioners say they are particularly concerned about what's in the speech because of what they've heard about Yasin's activities in the Islamic Society. Yasin has wrangled at times with Jewish leaders of Harvard Hillel. For instance, plans for a Jewish-Muslim prayer vigil after a burst of Israeli-Palestinian violence fell through when leaders of the two groups couldn't agree on who or what to pray for.

And Yasin has spoken favorably of the humanitarian efforts of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, an organization focused on aiding Palestinians that the US Treasury Department has identified as a supporter of Hamas, the radical Muslim group that has sponsored suicide bombings recently inside Israel. Yasin saw the foundation's work firsthand in Albania when he was volunteering in refugee camps there. In 2000, he and other Islamic Society leaders considered holding a fund-raiser for the foundation, only to choose a Palestinian relief group at the last minute instead, Yasin said.

Moshe Spinowitz, a Harvard senior who has led Hillel's literary magazine and a political group, Jews for Conservative Politics, said Yasin's support for the foundation, as well as the theme of his speech, raised ''red flags'' for him and several friends.

''Considering the title, and the person speaking, we want some guarantees from Harvard that this is a speech that we'll be proud of,'' said Spinowitz. ''This talk has the potential to be religiously and spiritually divisive, and very emotional. And our parents will be sitting in the audience with us.''

Yasin met with the commencement marshal, Richard Hunt, on Friday afternoon and raised the subject of the criticism. According to Yasin, Hunt said that the committee would stand by the senior and the ''American Jihad'' title, while also assuring the Harvard community that ''the speech is one that needs to be heard.''

Hunt did not return a phone call seeking comment.

On Saturday, Yasin said that he had received a death threat in the form of an e-mail greeting card, and was notifying law enforcement and Harvard authorities.

''People are targeting me as some kind of monstrous anti-Semite,'' Yasin said. ''It's all based on misunderstandings that are part of the tragedy of miscommunications in these times.''

© Copyright 2002 Globe Newspaper Company

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