From Slate Magazine · Aymann Ismail · · 2m
How Many Kids Did You Kill Today?
New York mayor Zohran Mamdani faces backlash over Palestinian rights stance at Oct 7 vigil.
In brief
New York mayor Zohran Mamdani faces backlash over Palestinian rights stance at Oct 7 vigil. New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani faces protests from pro-Palestinian activists over his handling of Palestinian rights and antisemitism policies. Originally reported by Slate Magazine.
Palestinian American activist at vigil
Libby Lenkinski, an Israeli American activist, attended a vigil for Israeli and Palestinian victims in New York City on Oct 7.
“I couldn’t quite hear what was happening. I couldn’t quite decipher what I was seeing. I was like, is this part of it or is this something else?”
Protesters target Mamdani
Protesters shouted at Mayor Zohran Mamdani at the vigil: 'Zohran, you can’t hide, you support genocide.'
“Zohran, you can’t hide, you support genocide.”
Vigil disrupted
Protesters drowned out testimonies from families in Gaza at the vigil organized by Israelis for Peace.
“You couldn’t get through a single testimony, including from families in Gaza, without being disrupted by these chants.”
Conservative reaction
Conservatives reacted with glee to the vigil disruption while liberals scratched their heads.
“Conservatives reacted with glee”
Mamdani's approval
56% of NYC voters rated Mamdani's job as 'excellent' or 'good' in a Suffolk University poll.
“56 percent of voters said he was doing an 'excellent' or 'good' job”
Criminal justice friction
Mamdani faces criticism from criminal justice groups over NYPD complicity with ICE.
“It wasn’t just one rally, either.”
ICE shooting incident
A 5-year-old child sat in the back seat when ICE agents shot a man in a vehicle.
“a 5-year-old child sat in the back seat”
Mamdani's response
Mamdani refused to change NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
“Jessica Tisch is the police commissioner. I have no plans to change that.”
Student organizer
A CUNY law student organized protests against West Bank property sales at New York synagogues.
“The demonstration began as a student walkout”
Mamdani's policy critique
The law student criticized Mamdani's Strategy to Combat Antisemitism for conflating anti-Zionism with antisemitism.
“the mayor had defended policing those demonstrations without doing enough to stop the sales”
Protesters' motivation
Protesters say Mamdani won the election because of Palestine and must be pressured to choose principles over position.
“The only reason he won this election is because of Palestine”
Palestinian American organizer
Nerdeen Kiswani, co-founder of Within Our Lifetime, supported the protest and called for more action.
“I was critical of him from when he first announced his campaign, and I don’t think I shifted”
Political strategist
Rania Batrice, a Palestinian American political strategist, called the confrontation 'wildly unhelpful'.
“This is absolutely ridiculous”
Muslim community organizer
Debbie Almontaser, a Muslim community organizer, expected criticism but saw room for Mamdani to be true to his role.
“He is the mayor of over 8 million people in New York City, and he is accountable for their safety, security, and well-being.”
Mamdani's response
Mamdani stated he signed up for the role of mayor.
“I am the mayor of New York City, and this is what I signed up for.”
The bottom line
New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani faces protests from pro-Palestinian activists over his handling of Palestinian rights and antisemitism policies.
