New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Friday defended his decision to strike down executive orders that his predecessor, Eric Adams, had put in place to address antisemitism.
Mamdani, who has been accused of antisemitism over his support of the anti-Israel movement, told reporters on Friday that he would fund measures to prevent hate crimes and would make the protection of Jewish New Yorkers a focus of his administration despite the revocation.
On Thursday, Mamdani revoked orders by Adams that aimed to prevent city institutions from divesting from Israel and that defined antisemitism in terms outlined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, an intergovernmental organization of 35 countries that promotes Holocaust education.
In a rare joint statement, seven New York-area Jewish groups – UJA-Federation of New York, the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, Anti-Defamation League New York/New Jersey, American Jewish Committee New York, the New York Board of Rabbis, Agudath Israel of America, and the Orthodox Union – criticized Mamdani’s decision to reverse the IHRA and boycott orders.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, among other groups, has previously argued that the IHRA definition has been used to silence advocates for Palestinian rights.
Criticism Mamdani received from Jewish orgs. in first days as mayor
Mamdani later said that many Jewish organizations do not agree with the IHRA definition, according to Politico.
While Islamic organizations praised Mamdani’s moves, the Foreign Ministry published a post on X/Twitter stating that Mamdani “shows his true face: He scraps the IHRA definition of antisemitism and lifts restrictions on boycotting Israel. This isn’t leadership. It’s antisemitic gasoline on an open fire.”
Nonprofit, pro-Israel organization StandWithUs condemned Mamdani’s decision and urged him to reverse it, saying that “decisions made on day one set the tone for an administration.”
“The IHRA definition reflects how the vast majority of Jews experience antisemitism today and is widely used to identify and combat this hatred worldwide. Whether the mayor likes it or not, it is a fact that demonizing the world’s only Jewish state, discriminating against it, and denying its right to exist are all forms of bigotry against Jews.”
The Israeli-American Council expressed concern about Mamdani’s decision, saying he “will make the city’s efforts to combat antisemitism subjective, inconsistent, and ultimately ineffective.”
“The mayor’s promise to preserve the New York Office of Antisemitism, while at the same time revoking the definition on which that office relies, is a hollow gesture,” an IAC statement read.
The IAC then asked Mamdani in the statement if he plans to readopt the IHRA definition “or continue the performative act of claiming opposition to antisemitism while eliminating the tools for combating it.”