A group of rabbis urged socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Monday to tone down his aggressive rhetoric about Israel for the safety of Jewish people in his city.
The faith leaders convened at a private meeting held by the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism at City Hall for an hour to express to Mamdani how they think his public statements are fueling division in a city already struggling with rising anti-Jewish hate crimes, The New York Times reported.
“I’m happy to work in partnership with your administration, but Mr. Mayor, you are 90 percent of what could be different here,” Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the head of the Reform movement in North America, recalled telling Mamdani in the meeting. “If instead of vilifying Israel, you spoke constructively, in measured tones — that would move the needle more than anything else, and I’m hopeful you’ll use that power.”
Last month, Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor, denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “war criminal” and lamented his inability to have him arrested. His rhetoric “caused some Jews to worry that Mr. Mamdani risked inflaming antisemitism in the city,” according to the report.
Rabbi Rachel Timoner of Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn told the publication there were varying opinions at the meeting, with some rabbis urging Mamdani to tone down his rhetoric, and others asking him to move his attention away from Israel and onto local issues.
“Others said they supported his right to criticize Israel and its leadership, but asked that he do so with more nuance, perhaps by more consistently condemning Hamas and emphasizing that American Jews are not responsible for the actions of the Israeli government,” according to the report.
While there were an array of views, the rabbis all seemed to agree that Mamdani’s relationship with the Jewish community needs improvement, one of the rabbis told the publication on condition of anonymity.
“There was no tiptoeing around the elephant in the room,” said Rabbi Jonathan Leener, the leader of the Prospect Heights Shul, which is liberal modern Orthodox synagogue in Brooklyn.
“The mayor’s comments have ramifications and he needs to be aware of how in the current climate, that just adds to the temperature and creates an environment that I think a lot of Jews feel vulnerable in,” he continued.
Timoner, whose congregation includes Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), said that if Mamdani wants to criticize Israel and speak on behalf of Palestinians — something she said she does “regularly” — then he must express “complexity” in his message.
“We can’t vote there, we don’t have any ability to change what’s happening, yet people are profiling us and spewing hate at us because they’re angry at the Israeli government,” she said.
The meeting included modern Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform rabbis, according to the report. One of the rabbis told the publication the mayor said he was grateful for their feedback and was taking it to heart.
Phylisa Wisdom, executive director of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, said in a statement that the meeting was an “open, positive, and constructive conversation.”
“Mayor Mamdani has and will continue to engage with Jewish life in New York City in order to meet the needs of our communities and reaffirm his commitment to the thriving of Jewish communities across the five boroughs,” Wisdom said.
Rabbi Leener said he did not attend the meeting to change Mamdani’s mind, but to urge him to create a safer city for his Jewish constituents and to devote more police resources to protecting synagogues and other Jewish institutions from attacks.
“That should be his focus and not making comments unnecessarily about the conflict,” Rabbi Leener said. “Or having a bit more nuance around it. That it’s not just good versus evil.”