On May 5, a mob of 100 anti-Israel protesters showed up outside the same Manhattan synagogue that 200 of them descended upon last November. Many of the radical Muslims hid their faces, wearing scarves and masks. As Jews entered the synagogue, they shouted, and carried signs, saying, “from the river to the sea,” “long live the intifada,” “stop the sale of stolen land,” and “Israel should not exist.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani could not unequivocally condemn the “protesters.” He allowed that Jews had a right to attend synagogue, but he objected to them going to an event where they could buy property in Israel, noting that some of the real estate that was for sale was in the West Bank.
Mamdani’s comment about the West Bank is a ruse. He objects to any sale of land in Israel and that is because he does not recognize its right to even exist. According to the mayor, Israel, which is recognized under international law, has no right to exist “as a Jewish state.”
Why not? He says he is against any state with a “hierarchy of citizenship on the basis of religion.” That’s rich coming from a radical Muslim who never cites this as an objection to Muslim-majority nations that impose sharia law. What could be more hierarchal and objectionable than a legal system that categorically denies elementary human rights?
Mamdani brags that opposition to Israel is “central to my identity.” It sure is. That explains why, after the unprovoked slaughter of 1,200 innocent Jews on October 7, 2023, he could not bring himself to condemn it. But he did take the opportunity to accuse Israel of apartheid.
By contrast, Julie Menin, Speaker of the New York City Council, said the mob was guilty of fueling “the flames of antisemitism.” She succeeded in getting a law passed (yet to go into effect) restricting protesters outside houses of worship. Mamdani opposed it, but then reluctantly accepted its fate knowing that Menin had secured a veto-proof majority. The Catholic League endorsed it.
Perversely, Mamdani declares New York City to be a “sanctuary city” that welcomes and protects illegal aliens—they are free to avail themselves of the full panoply of city services—but when it comes to a real sanctuary, e.g., a house of worship, his enthusiasm wanes.
Contrary to the conventional wisdom, and to what Mamdani believes, the First Amendment does not protect the right to assemble. It protects “the right of the people peaceably to assemble.” Those who threaten Jews by trying to break through police barricades (one of the cops was hospitalized at the incident) are not assembling peacefully. Were it not for the police, these thugs would have assaulted innocent Jews.
When Catholic churches are torched and invaded, the Catholic League never fails to condemn them, demanding accountability for the guilty. It makes no difference which house of worship is targeted, we condemn all such behavior. And unlike Mamdani, we do so without equivocation.
Contact his deputy communications director, Lekha Sunder: Lsunder@cityhall.nyc.gov
