New York state representative Zohran Mamdani’s win in Tuesday’s Democratic Party mayoral primary in New York City has triggered “significant extreme and hateful rhetoric across the political and ideological spectrum,” according to the Anti-Defamation League.
“Unfortunately, it should come as no surprise that anti-Zionists have felt empowered and energized by Mamdani’s win,” the nonprofit stated on Thursday.
“The candidate himself has endorsed the BDS movement and has defended anti-Israel rhetoric, including calls to ‘Globalize the intifada,’ a slogan generally understood as a call for indiscriminate violence against Israel, and potentially against Jews and Jewish institutions worldwide, despite the damage it wreaks on the Jewish community,” the ADL’s Center on Extremism said.
Among the anti-Zionist responses listed by the ADL to the political victory are an “influencer” who said that it is “a huge blow to corrupt Zionist billionaires” and that Americans are “sick” of Zionism.
The ADL also noted that Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), said Mamdani’s represents a “win for Palestine” and “a reflection that Americans are tired of the Zionist propaganda and the corrupt leaders of the Democratic Party.”
The agency said that “while the primary results will not be officially certified until at least next month, after mail-in ballots and ranked-choice votes are counted, these early reactions raise concerns about the hateful rhetoric that is likely to only increase as the general election approaches this fall with Mamdani as the presumptive Democratic nominee.”
The nonprofit also cited Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.), who is Jewish, as an example of what it said were “anti-Muslim and xenophobic responses” to Mamdani’s victory.
The ADL article quoted Fine’s social-media post, which remains live, that “if Mamdani has his way, New York City classrooms won’t be teaching the Constitution in civics class. They’ll be teaching Sharia law.”
JNS sought comment from Fine’s office but did not get a response by press time.