Socialist Zohran Mamdani won't condemn 'globalize the intifada', claims doing so would 'police speech'

Socialist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani declined to condemn the phrase "globalize the intifada," a phrase that calls for global, sustained violence against Jews, their supporters, and the nation of Israel. Mamdani was repeatedly pressed on the subject when he appeared in an interview with NBC News host Kristin Welker on Sunday after he had been previously asked about the phrase. 

"I want to ask you about an issue that has divided New Yorkers in recent weeks. You were recently asked about the term 'globalize the intifada,' if it makes you uncomfortable. In that moment, you did not condemn the phrase. Now, just so folks understand, it is a phrase that many people hear as a call to violence against Jews," Welker commented. "So I want to give you the opportunity to respond here and now, do you condemn that phrase, ‘globalize the intifada?'"

Instead of condemning the phrase, he declined to do so, and said that he does not want to "police language."

"That's not language that I use. The language that I use, the language that I will continue to use to lead this city, is that which speaks clearly to my intent, which is an intent grounded in a belief in universal human rights," Mamdani replied. "And ultimately, that's what is the foundation of so much of my politics, the belief that freedom and justice and safety are things that, to have meaning, have to be applied to all people and that includes Israelis and Palestinians alike."

Welker asked him once again if he would condemn the phrase, and he responded, "I don’t believe that the role of the mayor is to police speech."

"Ultimately, what I think I need to show is the ability to not only talk about something but to tackle it and to make clear there is no room for antisemitism in the city. We have to root out that bigotry and, ultimately, we do that through the actions, and that is the mayor I will be, one that protects Jewish New Yorkers and lives up to that commitment through the work that I do," he added.

When Welker then asked him again why he would not condemn the phrase, he replied, "My concern is, to start to walk down the line of language and making clear what language I believe is permissible or impermissible, takes me into a place similar to that of the president, who is looking to do those very kinds of things, putting people in jail for writing an op-ed, putting them in jail for protesting. Ultimately, it is not language that I use. It is language I understand there are concerns about, and what I will do is showcase my vision for the city through my words and my actions."

He has also been criticized over a post to X on October 8, 2023, the day after the October 7 terrorist attacks on Israel, where he made no mention of Hamas, but condemned “Netanyahu’s declaration of war” as well accused Israel of occupying Gaza and labeled the country an apartheid state.

New York Senator and Democrat Kristen Gillibrand called on Mamdani to condemn the phrase last week during a radio interview. In 2021, Mamdani backed BDS, which stands for the movement "boycott, divest, and sanction" the nation of Israel. He also said he backed "seizing the means of production," which is a Marxist concept about overthrowing the middle class and removing the ownership class.

The socialist candidate was able to beat out former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democrat primary for mayor earlier this month, winning over a large share of college-educated white votes. Some of his policies in his platform include higher taxes for "whiter neighborhoods," raising the minimum wage to $30 an hour by 2030, government-owned grocery stores, rent freezes, and others.