NYC mayor releases blueprint for combating antisemitism, a day before Mamdani sworn in

Eric Adams’s Office to Combat Antisemitism issues recommendations for opposing discrimination against Jews, drawing some implicit comparisons with his anti-Zionist successor

NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s antisemitism task force released a landmark report on Wednesday that outlined a blueprint for combating discrimination against Jews, a day before his far-left, anti-Zionist successor Zohran Mamdani takes office.

Adams is a staunch supporter of Israel and the Jewish community who has made opposing antisemitism a priority and taken a series of measures to rein in discrimination against Jews.

One of those steps was establishing the Office to Combat Antisemitism in May, the first office of its kind in a major US city. That office released Wednesday’s report, summing up its activities and issuing recommendations for combating antisemitism in US cities.

Antisemitic incidents accounted for 62% of all hate crimes in the city in the first quarter of 2025, prompting the office’s establishment, the report said. Jews make up around 12% of the city’s population.

Antisemitism surged in New York and globally after the October 2023 invasion of Israel. The rate has decreased in recent months, although it was unclear if the decline was due to policies, changes in the Middle East, or other factors.

New York’s leadership, governing the city with the world’s largest Jewish population, has a “unique responsibility” in combating hatred of Jews, the report said.

The 80-page report, the first released by the office, described antisemitism’s evolution since Jews first arrived in New York in 1654. The governor at the time, Peter Stuyvesant, sought to expel the Jewish refugees, calling Jews a “deceitful race” and enemies of Jesus Christ.

“This founding episode established a pattern: a community contributing to the city’s development while facing regular discrimination,” the report said.

“Antisemitism has persistently adapted to each era while maintaining its essential character: targeting Jews based on religion, ethnicity, and connection to the Land of Israel,” the report said.

The document drew implicit comparisons with Mamdani, without mentioning him by name.

The report underlined Jews’ connection to Israel and Zionism’s deep roots, while Mamdani has identified as an anti-Zionist and sought to divorce antisemitism from anti-Zionism. The report notes that every city mayor since Israel’s founding in 1948 has visited Israel, and that every mayor has marched in the Israel parade since the annual event began in 1964. Mamdani has said he will do neither.

The office warned that “the Israel dimension is central” to antisemitism, and that authorities needed to take hatred of Israel into account.

“The practical consequence of anti-Zionist rhetoric is the dehumanization of Zionists (the vast majority of Jewish people) and the dehumanization of all Jewish people,” the report said. “Understanding modern antisemitism requires recognizing that Jewish identity is intrinsically tied to Israel. Municipal responses that fail to account for this dimension misunderstand the contemporary manifestation of this ancient hatred.”

The report outlined the Office to Combat Antisemitism’s activities.

The office’s future under the Mamdani administration is uncertain. The head of the office, Rabbi Moshe Davis, told The Times of Israel on Wednesday that he had not heard from Mamdani’s team, indicating that he would remain in his position for the time being. Mamdani could dismantle the office, but that would likely provoke backlash due to concerns about antisemitism under his administration. Mamdani’s team did not address a request for information about plans for the office last week.

The office coordinates efforts to oppose discrimination against Jews among more than 35 city agencies. It formed an interagency body including representatives from the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, the NYPD, and the city’s Commission on Human Rights. The group also monitors court cases involving antisemitism and liaises with the Jewish community, law enforcement and district attorneys, among other roles.

In some specific examples, when a sign for Israel Bonds on public property was vandalized to read “Israel bombs,” the antisemitism office contacted the Department of Transportation’s representative in the office and the sign was replaced in a few hours. The Department of Citywide Administrative Services partnered with the antisemitism office for a citywide antisemitism training and to launch a new Holocaust memorial in Queens.

Other projects included hosting a Sigd event at City Hall, reviewing educational curriculum, scheduling construction work to accommodate the Jewish calendar, and tailoring religious accommodations for Jews who are incarcerated.

The report said the office’s work could provide other municipalities with a framework for countering discrimination against Jews.

It included “messaging principles” the Adams administration used to reassure Jews after antisemitic incidents, urging a timely response, moral clarity “despite uncertainty,” directly naming antisemitism, pairing messaging with actions such as investigations, and making use of experts.

The report criticized “conditional statements” that condemned antisemitism, while also criticizing Israeli actions, for example.

“Political officials attempt to appease multiple audiences by appearing to condemn antisemitism for Jewish constituents while signaling sympathy for attackers,” the report said. “The opposition to antisemitism comes off as insincere.”

After a vitriolic protest outside a synagogue last month, for example, Mamdani spoke out against both the protesters and the synagogue, sparking an uproar.

Also included were recommendations for the city government going forward.

Adams enacted a series of antisemitism and pro-Israel measures by executive order, including establishing the antisemitism office; opposing the boycott campaign targeting Israel; calling on the police to reassess security for houses of worship; establishing a business council to build economic ties with Israel; and endorsing the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which covers some forms of Israel criticism.

Executive orders are faster to implement than city laws, but do not have the same legal force. Mamdani can also revoke the orders and has said he will nix the IHRA definition and the business council.

The report urged the City Council to codify into city law some legislative proposals in the coming year. The proposals include an endorsement of the IHRA definition, anti-masking legislation, and protection for houses of worship.

The presumed next City Council speaker, Julie Menin, is a Jewish centrist who will be able to serve as a counterweight against the Mamdani administration.

Mamdani takes office with the start of the new year.