More than 1,300 NY Jews sign letters demanding antisemitism action from Mamdani

By Luke Tress

You will receive email alerts from this author. Manage alert preferences on your profile page

You will no longer receive email alerts from this author. Manage alert preferences on your profile page

28 May 2026, 6:30 pm

Edit

Luke Tress is The Times of Israel's New York correspondent.

More than 1,300 Jewish New Yorkers sign two open letters demanding New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani take action against antisemitism.

The letters, organized by The Jewish Majority advocacy group, call on Mamdani to support legislation meant to protect Jewish institutions, denounce anti-Zionist rhetoric and condemn the protest slogan “globalize the intifada.”

One of the letters has more than 1,300 signatures from community members, and another is signed by more than 70 rabbis and cantors.

The rabbis’ letter says, “The Jewish community sees with increasing clarity that threats to Jewish safety are growing, and too often those entrusted with leadership have responded with equivocation instead of moral clarity.”

“Jewish New Yorkers need something very simple from our mayor: a clear and unequivocal recognition that excluding, stigmatizing, or targeting Jews because of a core Jewish value, support for Jewish self-determination in our historic homeland, is discrimination,” the letter says.

Mamdani has condemned expressions of classic antisemitism, such as swastikas, but does not consider anti-Zionist rhetoric as discriminatory.

The letter criticizes Mamdani for vetoing legislation meant to safeguard educational facilities during protests, and cites a recent poll from the Jewish Majority that found most Jewish New Yorkers interpret “intifada” as a call for violence and believe Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the phrase has emboldened “pro-Hamas protesters.”

The poll also found an overwhelming majority — 82% — of Jewish New Yorkers are concerned about antisemitism. Jews are targeted in hate crimes in New York City more than all other groups combined, according to NYPD data.

Mamdani has said he would “discourage” the phrase “globalize the intifada,” but has not condemned the slogan.

“For generations, New York has been the greatest center of Jewish life in America. Whether it remains so will depend on whether New York’s leaders are willing to defend Jewish dignity and Jewish safety,” the letter says.