New Yorkers and native leaders expressed outrage over Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s “weak” and deeply troubling response, by way of his spokesperson, to an antisemitic protest exterior the Park East Synagogue final week.
Scores of protestors converged upon the synagogue, the place Nefesh B’Nefesh, a company that assists Jewish immigration to Israel, held a scheduled occasion. Many protestors sporting face masks held Palestinian flags and chanted messages similar to “Globalize the Intifiada” and “Death to the IDF,” per quite a few on-line movies.
The incident prompted an NYPD response, with on-line movies exhibiting officers actively separating the demonstrators from a smaller group of counter-protesters. However the sturdy protest, marked with demise threats and antisemitic language, was met with a lackluster response from Mamdani, based on many Jewish leaders in NYC.
It was notably appalling to many observers, on condition that Mamdani, in the course of the marketing campaign, had publicly said that phrases similar to “globalize the intifada” weren’t one thing he would use, and would discourage others from utilizing. He claimed he had acknowledged the hurt such rhetoric causes Jewish New Yorkers.
Mamdani’s transition crew didn’t reply to New York News’s request for touch upon Sunday, however the under assertion got here from his spokesperson, Dora Pekec, instantly following Wednesday night time’s protest:
“The Mayor-elect has discouraged the language used at last night’s protest and will continue to do so. He believes every New Yorker should be free to enter a house of worship without intimidation, and that these sacred spaces should not be used to promote activities in violation of international law.”
The assertion, which outraged many Jewish New Yorkers, didn’t instantly deal with the rhetoric utilized by protesters, nor did it clarify the perceived worldwide regulation violation that Pekec claimed occurred.
Mamdani response ‘poured more fuel on the fire’
U.S. President Donald Trump and New York Metropolis Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani react as they converse to members of the media within the Oval Workplace on the White Home in Washington, D.C., U.S., November 21, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstREUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Jewish leaders in New York thought of the assertion from the Mamdani transition crew a “hollow” response to hate-filled rhetoric voiced exterior the synagogue Wednesday.
Gavriel Sanders, a spokesperson for the Be a Mensch Basis, referred to as the assertion “hollow” and questioned how Mamdani will defend Jewish New Yorkers.
“Concrete action, not statements of discouragement, are needed to address rising antisemitism in NYC,” Sanders stated. “The statement issued by the Mayor-elect’s team is as hollow as his proposed plans to protect Jews in the city. If this response is any indication of how the Mayor-elect plans on protecting every New Yorker during his administration, then he must stand up and push back against violence towards Jews. Violence will only flourish in the absence of any leadership.”
Rabbi Chaim Steinmetz of Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun on the Higher East Aspect stated the Mayor-elect’s response “poured more fuel on the fire” of antisemitism.
“Mamdani promised during the campaign that he would take antisemitism seriously,” Steinmetz stated. “But his statement after the near riot outside Park East Synagogue doesn’t take antisemitism seriously at all. A group of 200 people, shouting violent slogans, came to intimidate the members of a synagogue. We have not seen anything like this in NYC in decades.”
He informed New York News that his neighborhood will not be solely harm, however shocked by the protest. Steinmetz additionally feels Pekec’s assertion provides insult to harm.
“Instead of condemning the protestors, Mamdani’s spokesperson victim-blamed the members of the synagogue by making the absurd claim that the synagogue program broke international law,” the rabbi stated. “And she refused to condemn the protesters, only offering the vapid, mealy-mouthed thought that the mayor had ‘discouraged’ such rhetoric in the past.”
He additionally expressed concern that the assertion’s weak spot may fail to discourage future protests concentrating on synagogues.
“Mamdani must apologize for this statement immediately before more damage is done,” Steinmetz stated.
A detailed eye on how Mamdani will reply to antisemitism
Mamdani’s stance on Israel and antisemitism was intently watched by New Yorkers all through his marketing campaign. Throughout early voting in October, greater than 1,000 rabbis from throughout the nation publicly voiced their opposition to a Mamdani mayoralship, criticizing the Meeting Member from Queens for serving to to propagate a hostile setting for Jewish New Yorkers.
Throughout one of many mayoral debates earlier this 12 months, moderators requested Mamdani if he had regrets about how he had handled points concerning Israel and Jewish New Yorkers persevering with to really feel unsafe after acts of antisemitism elevated after the beginning of the Hamas-Israel battle on Oct. 7, 2023.
Mamdani didn’t instantly reply as to whether he had any regrets about his statements or views on Israel, however said that he can be a mayor for all New Yorkers.
“That includes Jewish New Yorkers who may have concerns or opposition to the positions that I’ve shared about Israel and Palestine,” he stated on the talk stage.
Throughout a gathering late Friday afternoon with President Trump, Mayor-elect Mamdani didn’t instantly reply to a query about Wednesday’s incident, although he did say, “I care very deeply about Jewish safety. He further pledged to “root out antisemitism across the five boroughs.”
A ‘coordinated protest’ that Mamdani sought to justify, authorized skilled says
Gerard Filitti, senior counsel at The Lawfare Undertaking, took a authorized viewpoint when describing the Mayor-elect’s response to the protest.
“The protest outside Park East Synagogue likely violated federal, state, and NYC law, but instead of an unequivocally condemning it and outlining specific actions his administration would take to impose consequences on a mob targeting a house of worship and violating the civil rights of a vulnerable minority, Mayor-elect Mamdani invoked non-existent ‘activities in violation of international law’ to rationalize and justify this lawlessness, issuing an irresponsible and dangerous statement that exemplifies how Jew-hatred is normalized,” the lawyer defined.
He additional described the “coordinated protest” as aligning intently with the very fact patterns the U.S. Division of Justice has focused below the FACE Act, which protects entry inside a spot of worship.
“Harassment, menacing, targeted intimidation, and interference with lawful access to a building are all prohibited by state law, and the New York City Human Rights Law prohibits conduct that intimidates or deters people from accessing community institutions because of their religious or national origin,” Filitti stated. “These are the issues Mamdani should be focused on. Instead, he victim-blames Jews going to synagogue.”
After Wednesday’s protest, each Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul spoke out extra instantly concerning the incident, with the governor even calling it “shameful” on social media.
Adams stated on social media he plans to go to the Park East Synagogue after he returns dwelling on Sunday following a visit to Israel and Uzbekistan.
In the meantime, the Anti-Defamation League issued a press release criticizing the Mayor-elect’s response.
Deeply troubling to the ADL is the Mayor-elect’s feedback suggesting Jewish establishments in New York are “violating international law” by holding a neighborhood program supporting Jews who need to transfer to Israel,” the assertion learn. “This is outrageous and deeply offensive and is rooted in a hateful ideology that Jews are the only people in the world who do not deserve the right to self-determination in their ancestral homeland.”
