Washington (AP) – Zoran Mamdani A rapid rise in the mayoral race in New York City made him a symbol of the nation. It is both a point of pride among many Muslim Americans and a political focal point of rights.
His campaign was met by a surge in anti-Islamic languages directed at Democratic candidates. First Muslim mayor If you are elected in November.
Tennessee Republican Rep. Andy Ogres called him “Little Muhammad” and urged him to be deported. On social media, South Carolina GOP MP Nancy Mace referenced 9/11 along with a photo of a mamdani dressed in a kurta, a loose collarless shirt common in South Asia.
Far-right activist Laura Rumer He claimed there was no evidence that “NYC is trying to see 9/11 2.0.”
On many levels, the mamdani running is a key moment for the country and New York City that endured the rise in Islamophobia after 9/11 and subsequently.
“He really holds a lot of symbolism,” said Youssef Chouhoud, a political scientist at Christopher Newport University. The campaign, he said, is a reminder of anti-Muslim discrimination, but Muslim Americans are asserting their rights to “advance this society.”
Politicians from both major parties attacked Mamdani Progressive politics Criticism of Israel. Conservatives are more leaning against religious attacks and anti-immigrant sentiments.
president Donald Trump He picked him up for criticism, misques his US citizenship, and repeats the rhetoric of the “birth” who once targeted President Barack Obama.
in National Conservatism Conferencemultiple speakers use Mamdani’s name and religion as the offensive line, with former Trump adviser Steve Bannon making the phone call Democrat Socialist “Marxists and jihadists.”
Rhetoric is too familiar to many Muslim Americans. Amani al-Khatahtbehfaced the threat of slurs and death as the first Muslim woman to run for Congress in New Jersey in 2020.
“We’re at the intersection,” she said in an email. “On the one hand, Muslims have achieved unprecedented visibility and influence in the political space. On the other hand, our dehumanization has not been so normalized and widespread.”
The threat of political violence
in front His assassination Last month, a conservative activist Charlie Kirk On social media, “America’s biggest city was attacked by radical Islam 24 years ago, and now a similar form of its harmful force is poised to capture city hall.” On his show, Kirk called Mamdani “Mohammedan,” warning about the “Anglo Center” that is an outdated Muslim term and “under the control of Mohammedan” like New York.
Mamdani condemned Kirk’s murder while denounced the American plague. Political violence.
A Texas man was charged in September Create a death threat Prosecutors said to Mamdani, which included calling him a terrorist or saying “Muslims don’t belong here.”
Mamdani’s campaign responded by saying that these types of threats “reflect the broader climate of hatred that our cities don’t have.”
“We cannot and will not be threatened by racism, Islamophobia, or hatred,” the statement read.
Islamophobia from 9/11 onwards
Anti-Muslim bias has been persisting in many ways since September 11, 2001.
New York City Police now run through something with disabilities Muslim surveillance programme. In 2010, there was outrage over plans to build a Muslim community centre in the lower part of Manhattan. Dozens of states across the country have introduced laws aimed at banning Islamic laws.
“At its core, anti-Muslim rhetoric is the same: Muslims do not belong to this country, that they are eternal foreigners and threats to American society and government,” says Eman Abdelhadi, a sociologist at the University of Chicago.
Critics of Obama, a Christian with Muslim ancestors, have sought to use his connections with Islam as a political responsibility. As president, he spoke as a diplomatic asset about his childhood in the Muslim family of his father in Indonesia and Kenya.
Trump amplifies criticism of Obama’s background and stirs up rumors of what is called “birth” by mistakenly questioning whether Obama was born in the US
“He really created this new permit structure to help people express their anti-Muslim rhetoric more openly,” Chouhoud said.
A similar playbook is used in Mamdani. Born in Uganda to Indian parents, he has been living in New York City since the age of seven and became a US citizen in 2018. He was elected to the state legislature in 2020.
Despite that record, Trump resonated False claims It denies Mamdani’s citizenship and immigration status.
The background of the Democratic Party and the Israeli-Hamas War
Islamophobia and anti-Semitism rose during the war in Gaza. Both charges unfolded in a race between the mayor of New York, home to the largest Jewish and Muslim population in the United States.
Before you drop out, mayor Eric Adams Another Democrat joined the former government. Andrew CuomoBy calling mum ticks “dangerous.” Cuomo accused him of being “fueled by anti-Semitism” with sharp criticism of Israel.
An external group supporting Cuomo, now independent, has prepared a flyer that appears to stretch and darken the beard of the beard, which Mamdani has called “blatant Islamophobia.” Cuomo’s campaign denied it, and the mailer was never sent.
Other Democrats are keeping their distance from Mamdani Progressive PlatformIsraeli criticism and solid support for Palestinian rights.
New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand apologized to Mamdani after falsely saying he had referred to “global jihad.” The issue was that others refused to condemn the use of the slogan “globalize intifadas.” He said he would do that later. Dissuade its use. This phrase is seen as a call for liberation and rights in Palestine, while others are seen as a call for violence against Jews.
At an emotional press conference ahead of the major victory in June, Mamdani accused his rival of using anti-Semitism to score political points. “On every opportunity, I have said there is no room for anti-Semitism in this city, this country.”
Pride and hope from fellow Muslims
Despite the controversy, many American Muslims are cheerful about the possibility of a victory for Mamdani.
“The lasting emotions… are truly a deep sense of hope,” said Chouhoud, whose Brooklyn accent speaks to his New York roots.
Shahana Hanif, Mamdani’s ally and the first Muslim woman to be elected to the New York City Council, is optimistic. She said Islamophobia is being used as a terrifying tactic.
Hannan Sabett, a born and raised New Yorker and supporter of Mamdani, said his campaign has energized her family over two years of grief. Murder and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza.
Her children (ages 10 and 8) helped her phone bank for him. “They are very excited to see this young, energetic brown guy, Muslim guy.
As a mother, she feels that “it is impossible to explain why dehumanizing Muslims and Arabs has become socially acceptable and why our lives seem most important.”
“That said it wasn’t just historic about Zoran’s candidacy, it was necessary.
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Henao reported Fam from New York and Cairo.
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