New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani commemorated the 25th anniversary of September 11, despite a backlash from right-wing figures who questioned whether he should attend because of his Muslim faith.
Mamdani described September 11 as the “darkest day” in New York City’s history as he joined political leaders, victims’ families and first responders at the memorial ceremony.
His attendance came after Rudy Giuliani — the New York mayor during 9-11 — said earlier in the week that he was “offended” by the prospect of Mamdani attending the event.
The two men briefly greeted each other at the ceremony and exchanged a few words.
The encounter came as Mamdani’s opponents scrutinised his every move, including a brief interaction with Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
The pair were seen smiling and greeting each other during the ceremony. Some social media users criticised the exchange as inappropriate, while others pointed out that similar greetings between other Republican politicians at the event had attracted no attention.
The moment reflects the difficult balancing act Mamdani had to perform. More than 100,000 people signed an online petition calling for Mamdani not to attend the memorial.
After his interaction with Mamdani, Giuliani said: “We shook hands and I said to him, ‘I pray for you,’ and he said ‘thank you,’ and we just went our ways.”
“I think both of us knew, both of us had ended up facing each other, so we knew we could create a distraction, and either one of us could’ve turned around and said ‘go to hell,’ and that becomes the whole story, instead of these poor people.
“And I commend him also for shaking hands with me,” he added.
Giuliani designated ‘anti-Muslim extremist’ by CAIR
It was a sharp departure from what he said about the New York Mayor earlier in the week during a TV interview.
“It offends me that he’s coming,” he told Newsmax. In the same interview, Giuliani claimed that Muslims were taking over parts of America and Europe.
“They (Muslims) want to dominate us. That’s what they’re taught the day they begin their extremist religious education. Mamdani is a clear supporter of that. All of the Muslims he supports are murderers,” he added.
Following the comments, The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) designated Giuliani an “anti-Muslim extremist.”
“Mr Giuliani has a decades-long record of targeting our community simply because of our faith, and we are designating him an anti-Muslim extremist as a result of his hateful views,” said CAIR research and advocacy director Corey Saylor.
CAIR-New York executive director Afaf Nasher defended Mamdani’s attendance at the ceremony.
“Mayor Mamdani is the leader of New York City. He has a right and a duty to participate in the annual ceremony honoring the victims and first responders of September 11th attacks.
“Mayor Giuliani’s remarks are precisely the kind of un-American religious bigotry rejected by the people of New York City, who overwhelmingly want and expect their mayor to attend the memorial.”
Earlier in the week, the mayor drew attention to the health consequences of the attacks, highlighting documents showing that city officials knew the air in Lower Manhattan was toxic and that inspectors had found asbestos.
More people have since died from illnesses linked to the September 11 attacks and their aftermath than were killed on the day itself.
Mamdani criticised the leaders who were in charge at the time: “People got sick because the leaders they trusted lied and told them they were safe to breathe in toxic air.”
