New York City Mayor Zuhran Mamdani released a new plan Tuesday to combat antisemitism in the city, raising the budget for hate-crime prevention to $29 million a year. The announcement comes against official NYPD data showing antisemitic incidents up 9% this year. Though Jews make up roughly 12% of the city's population, they account for nearly half of all reported hate-crime victims in New York.
Mamdani opened his remarks with the well-known line from the Gemara: "Whoever saves one life (from Israel), it is as if he saved an entire world."
The plan drew immediate political backlash after it emerged that it contains no mention of the State of Israel or of antisemitism stemming from the Middle East conflict. In a closed briefing, Assemblyman Michael Novakhov attacked the head of the city's Office to Combat Hate, Felisa Vizdóm, saying "the main source of antisemitism in our city right now is Mayor Mamdani."
Vizdóm responded during the call that all residents are entitled to full security. "All Jewish New Yorkers deserve protection," she said, "including those who agree or disagree with the mayor on any issue." The mayor himself tried to strike a conciliatory tone in a video accompanying the report, saying, "For generations, Jewish New Yorkers have sustained our city. Today, we have a responsibility to sustain and protect our Jewish neighbors, a responsibility that belongs to each of us."
Jewish community leaders criticized the report's failure to define modern antisemitism disguised as criticism of Israel. Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, noted that "it's clear there is a very real threat of antisemitism from the right. The report should also recognize that in recent years we have seen growing violence targeting Jews under the pretext of protest against Israel." Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz added that the mayor's use of certain terms "sort of gives permission to some people to engage in antisemitic activity."
Some elected officials, however, welcomed the practical steps included in the document. State Senator Liz Krueger thanked the city for presenting "concrete strategies the city intends to take to address the growth of antisemitism," adding that "it is critical that our mayor, as the leader of our government, continue to make clear in word and deed that Jews in New York can express their religious and political beliefs safely, including those expressing support for Zionism, without fear of threats, harassment or violence."
The plan includes a series of city measures: continued Holocaust education programs in schools, mandatory training for city employees, displays of the Jewish community's contributions on digital kiosks across the city, and the establishment of a dedicated task force to secure synagogues and community institutions. The report stops short of adopting a fixed official definition of antisemitism, but notes that it relies on the framework presented by the Biden administration in 2023 as a guiding principle for city activity.
