# How Many Kids Did You Kill Today? > New York mayor Zohran Mamdani faces backlash over Palestinian rights stance at Oct 7 vigil. - Title: How Many Kids Did You Kill Today? · Slate Magazine | Shortify - Summary: New York mayor Zohran Mamdani faces backlash over Palestinian rights stance at Oct 7 vigil. New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani faces protests from… - Keywords: zohran mamdani, new york city, palestine, protests, antisemitism, mayor, palestinian rights, nypd, immigration enforcement, cuny, Many, Kids - Source: Slate Magazine — https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2026/10/zohran-mamdani-new-york-city-israel-trump.html?via=rss - Author: Aymann Ismail - Published: 2026-10-15T17:50:47.167+00:00 - Read time: 1 min - Topics: zohran mamdani, new york city, palestine, protests, antisemitism, mayor, palestinian rights, nypd, immigration enforcement, cuny ## 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. ## Key takeaway New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani faces protests from pro-Palestinian activists over his handling of Palestinian rights and antisemitism policies.