‘We ain’t fleeing’: Demand for firearms said to rise among NYC Jews after Mamdani elected

Jewish gun owners, firearms instructors and security professionals in New York City say demand for firearms training and concealed-carry permits has surged since the election of mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, with many citing concerns about safety and a perceived shift in the city’s political climate, according to a Saturday New York Post report.

At Samson Armory, a recently opened gun shop in Brooklyn, owner Michael Bergida said interest rose sharply immediately after Mamdani’s victory. Bergida, 30, an NRA-certified firearms instructor and Orthodox Jew, said many of his new customers are older Jewish residents, clergy members and others who fear rising antisemitism.

“We’re probably the only gun store to have a minyan,” Bergida said. He described growing anxiety within Orthodox communities and predicted “chaos” under the new administration. “The NYPD is all retiring – we have to fight for ourselves. People are freaking out over Mamdani – anyone who has any Christian-Judeo values,” he stated.

Bergida said he works closely with synagogues on preparedness. “It’s like doomsday prepping – people are loading up ammo,” he said. “I have a passion to prep Jews.”

Despite the concerns he cited, Bergida said he has no plans to leave the city. “We ain’t fleeing — we’re here to stay. We’re not victims anymore.”

Other firearms instructors reported similar spikes.

“It’s getting busy because of him,” said Lance Dashefsky, a gun safety instructor who teaches the mandatory state concealed-carry curriculum. He said many students explicitly cite the mayor-elect when asked why they want a gun license.

Brooklyn instructor Ross Den said the trend now includes Jewish doctors, lawyers, plumbers and even rabbis.

“There are plenty of rabbis who carry — shul is where the greatest threat is,” he said. Den added that bringing a concealed weapon to a synagogue is legal if the congregant is designated by the house of worship’s leadership as a security volunteer.

A group of over 1,000 rabbis and cantors from across the United States signed onto a letter voicing their opposition to Mamdani and the “political normalization” of anti-Zionism ahead of the election, citing his defense of the phrase “Globalize the Intifada,” which he has since said he would “discourage”; his refusal to acknowledge Israel’s existence as a Jewish state; and his repeated accusations against Israel of genocide in Gaza. Mamdani has also vowed to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York.

According to NYPD licensing data, concealed-carry applications rose from 620 in June — when Mamdani won the Democratic primary — to 706 in August, a 14 percent increase. Approvals typically take six months to a year and require completion of a state-mandated 18-hour course.

National Jewish security experts, however, have urged caution. In September, the Secure Community Network (SCN) — the official security body for North American Jewish institutions — released a detailed report warning that ad-hoc or informal carrying of firearms in synagogues poses “grave risks — to safety, to legal liability, and to communal trust.”

The report emphasized that any decision to introduce weapons should be limited to structured, synagogue-approved security teams with defined roles, extensive training, and coordination with law enforcement.

The report also stressed that “not allowing firearms at all is a perfectly viable policy,” and highlighted alternatives, including non-lethal tools, structural upgrades, volunteer training and professional security services.

SCN noted that if synagogues do opt for armed protection, it recommends hiring on-duty, off-duty or recently retired police officers over civilian volunteers.

The increase in gun-carrying activity among some Jewish New Yorkers follows years of debate over firearms in houses of worship. In 2022, several Jewish gun owners sued New York State after the implementation of the Concealed Carry Improvement Act, which prohibited firearms in “sensitive locations,” including places of worship like synagogues.

The plaintiffs argued the law infringed on their ability to freely practice their religion while facing persistent antisemitic threats, violating the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion, and the Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to bear arms. New York passed the law after the US Supreme Court invalidated a previous state law restricting concealed carry permits, ruling that the requirement for applicants to demonstrate “proper cause” violated the Second Amendment.