NYC rabbi accuses Zohran Mamdani of crossing the line ‘clearly into antisemitism’ | Watch

A prominent New York City rabbi has condemned Zohran Mamdani, accusing the mayoral candidate of contributing “to a mainstreaming of some of the most abhorrent antisemitism.” Manhattan’s Central Synagogue’s Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, one of the country’s most prominent Reform rabbis, also doubled down on her refusal to endorse any candidate in the race. Buchdahl’s Reform Jewish congregation is one of the largest in the city.

Mamdani, 34, made history as the first Muslim nominee. He made shockwaves after defeating Andrew Cuomo to win the Democratic primary, and without a doubt.

“We arrive this week at Parshat Lech-Lecha, the beginning of the Jewish story. God calls Abraham and Sarah to leave their home and comfort for a place they do not know, promising, ‘You shall be a blessing.’ But before we think of the grandeur of that destiny, imagine the uncertainty, the feeling of being strangers in unknown territory,” Buchdahl said, according to mediaite.com.

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“Many of you have shared that this is how you feel right now, that this is an existential moment for our Jewish community,” Buchdahl added. “Some fear that in the most Jewish city in the world, we are becoming strangers once again. I share many of those fears. I fear living in a city and a nation where anti-Zionist rhetoric is normalized and contagious, where Israel is singularly and repeatedly called out and demonized as the worst actor on the world stage, where our children feel ashamed to call themselves Zionists or afraid to wear Jewish symbols or worry they can only belong if they are the “good kind of Jew.” I’m terrified by how anti-Zionist rhetoric and antisemitic tropes have led to some deadly violence against Jews.”

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Buchdahl went on to accuse Mamdani of contributing to a “mainstreaming of some of the most abhorrent antisemitism.” She further said, “His shocking 2023 accusation—”When the boot of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been laced by the IDF”—crosses the line clearly into antisemitism, not only demonizing Israelis, but echoing the age-old antisemitic trope that Jews across the world are the root cause of our problems here. His false claims of genocide, his reluctance to label Hamas a terrorist organization, his unwillingness to condemn phrases like “globalize the Intifada,” and absolute opposition to Israel as a Jewish state contributes to an atmosphere of denigration and ostracization of Jewish people everywhere.”

Buchdahl accused Mamdani of pledging to “shut down the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group, which broke up the violent protests at Columbia, which could mean that when Jews are under attack, we may not feel protected.” “It is hard not to fear that the environment we witnessed for our Jewish children on Columbia’s campus after October 7th could be a preview of the way that New York City could start feeling for all Jews. For so many in this community, this is reason enough to determine your vote unequivocally,” she concluded.

Mamdani has been a vocal mayoral candidate, talking about various issues, including about his identity as a Muslim and the Islamophobia he has allegedly faced during his campaign. He presents himself as an organizer and a candidate of the people. "As life took its inevitable turns, with detours in film, rap, and writing," reads his state assembly profile, "it was always organising that ensured that the events of our world would not lead him to despair, but to action."

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