October 24, 2025, New York: Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate for Mayor of New York City, promised on Friday to openly embrace his Muslim background in response to what he called “racist and baseless” accusations from his opponents, especially former Governor Andrew Cuomo and his friends.
Mamdani spoke outside the Islamic Cultural Center of the Bronx mosque and became quite emotional as he talked about the “indignities” that Muslim New Yorkers have to deal with. He told a very personal anecdote about how his aunt stopped using the metro after the September 11 attacks because she was afraid of being seen in a religious head covering. He also remembered how an uncle had quietly told him to keep his faith to himself when he first got into politics.
Mamdani reminded the crowd, “These are lessons that so many Muslim New Yorkers have learned.” “These lessons have become the last things Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa, and Eric Adams have said in the last few days.”
The Rise in Attacks
Mamdani, a democratic socialist who won the Democratic primary by surprise, has been criticized by his opponents for his harsh position on Israel’s activities against Palestinians in Gaza, which he has called “genocide.” As the general election gets closer, the assaults have become more concentrated on his religion and apparent radicalism. This has led to accusations of Islamophobia from within the Democratic party.
The situation became worse this week when former Governor Andrew Cuomo seemed to chuckle along with presenter Sid Rosenberg on a conservative radio show when he said that Mamdani would “be cheering” another 9/11 assault. Cuomo is said to have said, “That’s another problem.” A video showed Mamdani eating rice with his hands and calling his followers criminals was also temporarily shared to one of Cuomo’s social media accounts before being taken down. A campaign spokeswoman said it was a mistake.
Mayor Eric Adams, who just backed Cuomo, also brought up the threat of terrorism at an event, saying that a Mamdani administration would make attacks more likely in New York City. “New York can’t be like Europe.” Adams said, “I don’t know what’s wrong with people.” “You can see what’s going on in other countries because of Islamic extremism.” Curtis Sliwa, a Republican candidate, has also been involved. He falsely accused Mamdani of supporting “global jihad” during a recent discussion.
Cuomo says he is not Islamophobic and that Mamdani is “playing the victim.”
Cuomo convened a news conference on Friday to respond to the growing criticism. He said that Mamdani was “playing the victim” for political advantage. He said that there was no widespread Islamophobia in New York, saying, “Don’t tell me New Yorkers are Islamophobic.” No, they’re not. He then said that Mamdani was using “the oldest, dirtiest political trick in the book: divide people.” Cuomo also said that Mamdani’s criticism of Israel had made Jewish New Yorkers afraid to leave their homes. Cuomo said he “didn’t take the remarks seriously at the time” and “it did not come out of my mouth” when asked about the radio host’s comments on 9/11.
Mamdani’s Promise: “I Will Find Myself in the Light”
Mamdani made it clear that he was not talking about his political opponents, but rather about his fellow Muslim New Yorkers who have been told for a long time to hide who they are. He said, “Every Muslim’s dream is to be treated like any other New Yorker.” “And yet we’ve been told for so long to ask for less than that and be happy with whatever little we get. He said, “No more.”
Mamdani said that at the start of his campaign, he had purposely not completely embraced his Muslim identity because he thought that if he “behaved well enough, or bit my tongue enough,” people would view him as “more than just my faith.” He ended with a strong promise to change his mind: “I was wrong.” There is never enough redirection. I won’t change who I am, how I eat, or the religion that I am happy to call my own. But I will change one thing. I won’t look for myself in the dark anymore. “I will find myself in the light.”
Endorsement Shows Democratic Unity
Some people in the Democratic establishment were skeptical about Mamdani because of his progressive views and criticism of Israel, but he got a big boost on Friday when House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries endorsed him. The endorsement shows that the Democratic party is united behind its contender, who upset the political establishment by winning the primary and is now ahead of Independent candidate Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa in general election polls.