Rabbi Jill Jacobs, CEO of T’ruah, said:
“T’ruah congratulates Zohran Mamdani on his historic campaign, and we look forward to working with him as mayor of New York City. We were thrilled to see a record-breaking two million New Yorkers make time to do their civic duty and vote.
“As an organization with our headquarters in New York, we pledge to work with our new mayor to build a New York that is inclusive, safe, and grounded in mutual accountability. We share his vision of a city for all its residents, including immigrants and people of all religious, ethnic, and national identities. This of course includes the many and diverse Jewish and Israeli New Yorkers.
“This election has been extremely divisive in the Jewish community. We have appreciated Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s openness to hearing directly from those in the Jewish community who felt harmed by his actions and words in the past, and adjusting his perspective. At the same time, we have seen some claim that a vote for Mamdani was a vote against Jewish safety. But Jewish safety cannot exist in a vacuum. Jews cannot be safe until everyone is safe. We can only successfully stop antisemitism when we are also opposing all other forms of bigotry in coalition with people of all backgrounds, races, and religions.
“We have been deeply concerned and dismayed by the Islamophobic attacks on Mayor-Elect Mamdani, including from members of the Jewish community. No politician should be judged or attacked on the basis of their religion or ethnicity. We must all continue to call out Islamophobia whenever it arises.
“For Jewish New Yorkers, rising antisemitism is a real and legitimate fear. Over the past two years, antisemitic incidents, including vandalism, harassment, assault, and tragically murder, have risen throughout the United States and the world. Perpetrators have included white nationalists who subscribe to antisemitic conspiracy theories about Jewish control of the world, as well as pro-Palestine activists whose actions cross the line from criticism of Israel to antisemitism. Just this past month, an Israeli tourist wearing a kippah was assaulted one block from our office in midtown and ended up in the hospital. Our staff were horrified by this incident in our own neighborhood. We must all refuse to be complacent about attacks like these. When antisemitic incidents occur, we will expect Mayor-Elect Mamdani to address them swiftly and thoroughly, just as we would expect his administration to address any other hateful acts targeting someone for their identity. In this era of divisiveness, we are hopeful that the new mayor will create a government that is truly representative of all New Yorkers.
“We are in a terrifying moment of rising authoritarianism and white nationalism. The far-right is eager to divide us. To survive, we need to be careful not to fall into the traps of prejudice, purity tests, or fear-based isolationism. We need, instead, to lean into stronger relationships with allies who share our vision of a city and a country that is safe for everyone.”
###
About T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights brings the Torah’s ideals of human dignity, equality, and justice to life by empowering our network of over 2,300 rabbis and cantors to be moral voices and to lead Jewish communities in advancing democracy and human rights for all people in the United States, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories.