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Mamdani’s Victory With Jewish Support Was A Triumph for Solidarity
Animated by a common vision and uncommon integrity, Brad Lander and Zohran Mamdani’s principled progressive partnership is an invitation to imagine something better for New York—and the country.
Jul 12, 2025
Brad Lander called me in the middle of NYC’s Democratic primary Election Day, during one of his breaks from the heat. I asked how he was feeling. “To be honest, I didn’t expect this, but I probably feel better than any other third place candidate in history.”
He had good reason to feel this way. As a Jewish candidate for mayor who aligned with and stood by his ostensible rival Zohran Mamdani, Lander had just done something extraordinary—he had modelled a kind of genuine solidarity that is all but unheard of in mainstream politics. What he was celebrating is the joy that comes with rejecting the politics of fear and division and allowing yourself to instead dream beyond the permissible.
As the executive director of a progressive Jewish organization fighting to make New York City a safe, affordable, caring home for all, dreaming beyond the permissible is our mission. Cynical politicians like former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, current New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and U.S. President Donald Trump have made careers out of playing to people’s fears and telling us, again and again, what we can’t do—what is impermissible to dream.
From lying, scare-tactic mailers to TV ads that prompted death threats against his loved ones, the attacks on Zohran Mamdani reflect the worst impulses of a MAGA-friendly Democratic establishment willing to use anti-Muslim bigotry and distorted claims of antisemitism to derail a threat to their power. The viciousness of the backlash in the days following Mamdani’s win has been breathtaking, even to those of us familiar with the extent to which racism and Islamophobia are acceptable in American politics. To politicians who want to weaponize the machinery of fear, New York’s Jewish community might look like a soft target.
In a culture starved for political imagination, Mamdani and Lander represented a thrilling embrace of something new—permission for New Yorkers to reach for so much more than the table scraps we’ve been offered by the political establishment.
Too often that strategy is successful. But what we saw during the primary is that this time they hit a wall built of hope. Despite millions of dollars in attack ads from billionaire donors, it proved impossible to convince most Jewish New Yorkers that Zohran Mamdani was a rabid antisemite. It is telling that the attacks on Zohran come from high-priced political consultants and pundits who experience New York City the same way Andrew Cuomo does—from the back seat of hired black SUVs. For most of us, Mr. Mamdani is a deeply recognizable and loveable New York character. It’s the machine politicians who are the weirdos.
That’s why Jews For Racial & Economic Justice (JFREJ) was able to mobilize thousands of Jewish voters to canvass, knock doors, phone bank, and become an integral part of the people-powered revolution that changed the direction of New York City politics last month. In a culture starved for political imagination, Mamdani and Lander represented a thrilling embrace of something new—permission for New Yorkers to reach for so much more than the table scraps we’ve been offered by the political establishment.
I saw this firsthand canvassing in Kensington, Brooklyn when I knocked on the door of an Orthodox Jewish woman who welcomed me onto her porch and spoke to me for a good 10 minutes. At a moment when so many members of the political class were debating the meaning of the word “intifada,” she wanted to talk about Section 8 vouchers. As her adorable children vied for attention she pointed to the semidetached homes to the right and left of her own. Both were sitting empty, she said, because her neighbors had been priced out. She was excited about Lander and Mamdani’s affordability proposals. The subject of Israel didn’t come up once.
Her story should not and does not minimize the concerns of some Jewish New Yorkers who are focused on safety and antisemitism. JFREJ has been fighting antisemitism for years, and we believe not enough attention and resources are directed to effectively addressing the dangers that American Jews face. But we also understand that most of what allows Jews to thrive are the same things that make all New Yorkers safe—a healthy city that works for all New York’s residents. Cuomo lost because he had nothing of substance to offer any of us. He spent millions stoking fears of antisemitism. Zohran showed up with a bold plan to fight it.
Twenty years after 9-11, when New York’s Muslim community was terrorized by hate violence and illegal New York Police Department surveillance, and several years into the ongoing surge of antisemitism, Lander and Mamdani campaigning arm-in-arm embodied the very best of New York City. For many Americans this was an inspiring lesson in the practice of radical solidarity—something we sorely need in the age of Donald Trump.
Solidarity like this isn’t easy. Lander wanted to be mayor, and would have been great in the role. When he let go of that dream to prioritize solidarity and support for Mamdani, he demonstrated the liberating power of believing that if we dream big enough, everyone wins.
As we head into a hotly contested general election we are already seeing the awful anti-Muslim rhetoric, baseless accusations of antisemitism, and cheap fearmongering we’ve come to expect from the Eric Adams-Donald Trump wing of our political class. New Yorkers deserve more.
Animated by a common vision and uncommon integrity, Brad Lander and Zohran Mamdani’s principled progressive partnership is an invitation to imagine something better for New York. The entire country is watching our city to see if we succeed in November. When we do, our impermissible dreams will transform what elections, politics, and democracy look and feel like in New York City for decades to come.
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Rights Group Demands Democrats Push to Censure Randy Fine Over Islamophobic Attacks
"This is far from the first time he and other members of Congress have engaged in such dangerous anti-Muslim rhetoric," said the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Jul 11, 2025
The largest Muslim civil rights group in the United States on Thursday called for a censure vote over Rep. Randy Fine's latest Islamophobic attacks on progressive Muslim lawmakers—and noting that the Democratic Party's tepid response to Islamophobia has fostered an environment where politicians from both sides of the aisle seem comfortable expressing anti-Muslim bigotry.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) issued an action alert, urging voters to pressure their Democratic representatives in the House to support a censure vote against Fine (R-Fla.), who responded Tuesday night to Rep. Ilhan Omar's (D-Minn.) criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Islamophobic remarks that have become commonplace for the first-term congressman.
"I'm sure it is difficult to see us welcome the killer of so many of your fellow Muslim terrorists," said Fine after Omar said it was "shameful" for Congress and the Trump administration to welcome Netanyahu's third visit to Washington, D.C. this year.
He doubled down on the comments Thursday night in an interview with Chris Cuomo on NewsNation, saying that "when you adopt the policies that Ilhan Omar has adopted, when you support Hamas in the way that she has, you're supporting terrorism."
Omar has not expressed support for Hamas and unequivocally condemned the group's attack on Israel in October 2023.
Fine also called Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and New York City mayoral candidate and state Rep. Zohran Mamdani (D-36) "Muslim terrorists" last week.
CAIR said in a letter to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) that it welcomed a statement released by Jeffries, Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) a day after Fine posted the attack against Omar on the social media platform X. In their statement, the Democratic leaders called Fine's comments "unhinged, racist, and Islamophobic" as well as "bigoted and disgusting," and demanded an apology—but made no mention of formally condemning him through a House censure vote.
"We appreciate the joint statement," wrote Robert McCaw, director of CAIR's government affairs department, and Basim Elkarra, executive director of CAIR Action, the group's advocacy arm. "However, we must be honest: Rep. Fine will never apologize, this is far from the first time he and other members of Congress have engaged in such dangerous anti-Muslim rhetoric, and our community has been deeply concerned by the House leadership's failure to consistently and strongly counter various other attacks."
That failure, Elkarra and McCaw suggested, has allowed anti-Muslim views to fester within both the Republican and Democratic parties—as evidenced by other recent comments by lawmakers.
CAIR pointed to Rep. Brian Mast's (R-Fla.) statement on the House floor in November 2023—in the first weeks of Israel's U.S.-backed assault on civilians in Gaza—that "there are very few Palestinian civilians." While Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) proposed censuring Mast, CAIR noted that House leaders—who continue to insist that Israel's killing of more than 57,000 Palestinians has been the result of attacks targeting Hamas and that Israel is acting in self defense—"never spoke up against Rep. Mast's remarks."
The letter also noted Rep. Brandon Gill's (R-Texas) "hateful" remarks about Mamdani in late June, after the progressive lawmaker stunned the political establishment by winning the Democratic mayoral primary. Gill criticized Mamdani for the common South Asian cultural practice of eating with his hands, saying that "civilized people in America don't eat like this"—expressing bigotry not only toward the mayoral candidate himself but also millions of people in the U.S. whose families are from parts of the Middle East, Asia, and Africa.
Republican lawmakers are not alone in expressing Islamophobic, xenophobic bigotry, CAIR emphasized, pointing to Rep. Josh Gottheimer's (D-N.J.) reported comment in a closed-door Democratic caucus meeting in October 2023 that Muslim members of Congress were excluded from a vigil for victims of Hamas' attack on Israel and Israel's attacks on Gaza "because they're all guilty." Some lawmakers reported that Gottheimer's exact words were, "They should feel guilty."
Democratic leaders did not condemn Gottheimer's comments.
"When such sentiments go unchallenged by Democratic caucus leadership, they further normalize the dehumanization of Muslim Americans at a time of rising hate and violence," said Elkarra and McCaw, who noted that CAIR received 8,658 complaints of anti-Muslim attacks and bias last year—the highest number since it began tracking civil rights violations.
Although a censure vote in the Republican-controlled House would likely fail, wrote Elkarra and McCaw, "the introduction and advocacy for the resolution will send a message that House Democratic leadership takes bigotry seriously and that no member of Congress can smear and threaten Muslim and Palestinian members of Congress without facing consequences"—with the message hopefully getting not only to Fine but all federal lawmakers.
Zeteo journalist Prem Thakker reported that as of Thursday, five Democrats had signaled they would support a censure vote: Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.), Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), and Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.).
The latter three lawmakers said they would vote to censure Fine after Zeteo contacted them; Ryan, Torres, and Goldman were among 22 Democrats who voted in favor of censuring Tlaib in 2023 for her use of the phrase "from the river to the sea"—a call for Palestinian liberation from the Israeli government's illegal occupation.
Thakker emphasized that the stark difference between the response to Tlaib's and Fine's comments from both political parties "is not just about hypocrisy or consistency." He wrote:
On one hand, Tlaib was punished for warning of the mass suffering that would come to her people, and pleading for the government she is part of not to be complicit in it.
She wasn't listened to. And then 2 million of her people were displaced. More than 50,000 were murdered.
On the other hand, Fine has thus far been unpunished by the same people who castigated Tlaib, while he has vilified an entire religion and demonized his colleagues—all under the flag of cheering for that same genocidal violence that has afflicted the people Tlaib was trying to defend.
The unequal treatment is doubly so, given that one member's humanity is punished while another's inhumanity is tolerated, even celebrated.
In their letter, Elkarra and McCaw urged Democratic leaders to publicly affirm their support and solidarity with all Muslim members of Congress and ensure Capitol Police is providing them with sufficient security and to "commit to institutional measures to combat Islamophobia in Congress."
"This moment is a defining moral test for the Democratic Party in Congress," said CAIR. "No member should endure slander, incitement, or threats without a strong defense from their leadership. This moment will be remembered."
"American Muslims are watching," the group added. "So are millions who believe that justice and safety must be defended for all, not only for some. The choice before your caucus is whether to meet this moment with courage or allow hate to go unchallenged."
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Sanders Says Billionaire Effort to Crush Mamdani Rooted in Fears of Nationwide Progressive Wave
"They are worried that his campaign is an example of what can happen all over the country."
Jul 11, 2025
Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday reaffirmed his support for Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, a fellow democratic socialist facing fierce opposition from deep-pocketed establishment figures who fear the broad nationwide appeal of his people-over-profit agenda.
Faced with the growing possibility that Mamdani would win the June 24 primary, Wall Street bankers, corporate executives, real estate developers, mega-landlords, and others rushed to dump money into disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign coffers. Now that Mamdani is the Democratic nominee, they're pouring tens of millions of dollars into an anti-Mamdani war chest, despite not even agreeing on which candidate to back in November's mayoral election.
In a Thursday interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour—who noted that Sanders' Fighting Oligarchy tour "has been drawing record crowds"—the Vermont senator said that policies like "giving massive tax breaks to billionaires and cutting healthcare and education and nutrition from working-class families [are] not popular."
While acknowledging that "mainstream Democrats" have been unable to galvanize opposition to Republicans' pro-billionaire, anti-working class agenda, Amanpour pressed Sanders about what he would tell New Yorkers who say that Mamdani "has never run anything, and he says, free buses, and... is he antisemitic or not?'"
Watch Sanders' response:
"First of all, understand, he's going to have the entire establishment, the oligarchy, the billionaires coming down on his head, not only because he's demanding that the wealthy and large corporations in New York City start paying their fair share of taxes, they are worried that his campaign is an example of what can happen all over the country when you bring people together to demand the government that works for all of us and not just a few," the senator said. "So, they really want to crush this guy."
"You have billionaires saying quite openly, 'We are going to spend as much as it takes to defeat this guy.' You have Democratic leadership not refusing to jump on board a campaign where this guy is the Democratic nominee," Sanders added. "So, most importantly, I'm going to do everything I can to see that Zohran becomes the next mayor of New York."
Some Democrats have done more than refuse to support their own party's nominee. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) falsely claimed last month that Mamdani had made references to "global jihad" and speciously argued that "globalize the intifada"—a call for Palestinian liberation and battling injustice—is a call to "kill all the Jews."
Freshman Congresswoman Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.) also falsely accused Mamdani of "a deeply disturbing pattern of unacceptable antisemitic comments."
Congressional progressives including Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), André Carson (D-Ind.), and Lateefah Simon (D-Calif.)—the four practicing Muslims in the House of Representatives—last month condemned what they called the "vile, anti-Muslim, and racist smears from our colleagues on both sides of the aisle."
Despite the attacks against him, Mamdani is leading Cuomo—who is now running as an Independent—by 10 points in a Slingshot Strategies poll of more than 1,000 registered voters published earlier this week. Mamdani also leads Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa by 21 points and scandal-ridden incumbent Mayor Eric Adams by 24 points.
Observers note that establishment Democrats' reservations about backing Mamdani seem to be fading amid the strength of his campaign. As Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) hold out on endorsing their own party's nominee, critics argue it's time to follow other lawmakers like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jerrold Nadler, Adriano Espaillat, and Nydia Velázquez—all New York Democrats—and endorse Mamdani.
"Mamdani won a record-setting primary victory, and unions, grassroots Democratic groups, and savvy elected officials are rushing to back him," The Nation's national affairs correspondent, John Nichols, wrote Friday. "Now it's the establishment's turn."
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