New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing fierce criticism from prominent Jewish leaders and advocacy groups after remarks he made during a campaign rally were interpreted as targeting AIPAC and its supporters with inflammatory rhetoric.
The controversy stems from comments Mamdani delivered during a June 18 rally in Brooklyn alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders and several progressive candidates. During the event, the socialist mayor sharply criticized the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, accusing the pro-Israel organization of using vast financial resources to influence elections and maintain political power.
“Now is the time of monsters,” Mamdani said during the speech. “These monsters take many forms today.”
He went on to reference AIPAC directly, claiming the organization spends millions of dollars in political contributions and dark-money campaigns to achieve its goals.
“In AIPAC, for whom the only thing more frightening than democracy being allowed to run its course is an end to genocide and Netanyahu’s wars,” Mamdani said. “They move millions in dark money to accomplish a single goal, to preserve their power so that they can turn us against one another.”
The remarks immediately drew backlash from Jewish community leaders who argued that the language crossed a line from political criticism into rhetoric that fuels hostility toward Jewish Americans.
Chaim Steinmetz, senior rabbi of Manhattan’s Kehilath Jeshurun synagogue, condemned the comments in a series of social media posts.
“Mamdani is accusing AIPAC of being a monster that subverts democracy, supports genocide and wants to divide Americans. This is pure incitement,” Steinmetz wrote.
The rabbi argued that such language could contribute to an already tense environment amid rising antisemitic incidents nationwide. He specifically pointed to concerns that rhetoric portraying Jewish organizations as sinister or manipulative could inspire extremists.
“Well, I’m an AIPAC supporter. And Mamdani is inciting hatred against people like me,” Steinmetz said.
Steinmetz further warned that New York is already struggling with significant antisemitism and accused the mayor of worsening those divisions.
“New York already has an antisemitism problem. Right now, you are pouring fuel on the fire,” he wrote.
The criticism was echoed by the Simon Wiesenthal Center. CEO Jim Berk argued that the characterization of Jewish organizations as uniquely manipulative or power-hungry has a long and troubling history.
“The claim that AIPAC exists not to pursue a political agenda, but to spread discord and wield influence for its own sake, is not new,” Berk said.
He noted that antisemitic movements throughout history have frequently portrayed Jewish groups as pursuing power and influence for its own sake rather than for political objectives.
“The suggestion that Jewish political participation is inherently suspect, illegitimate, or secretly manipulative is abhorrent,” Berk added. “This is the same old story, retold in a new language.”
The Anti-Defamation League also demanded an apology from the mayor. ADL New York-New Jersey issued a statement arguing that referring to Jewish advocates as “monsters” wielding “dark money” invoked dangerous stereotypes and conspiratorial themes.
“Referring to members of the Jewish community who advocate for causes they care about as ‘monsters’ wielding ‘dark money’ is shockingly offensive and unacceptable for a mayor who claims to represent all New Yorkers,” the organization said.
ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt delivered perhaps the sharpest rebuke.
“This is not a principled disagreement,” Greenblatt said. “This is prejudice pure and simple. It is deliberate, dangerous and disgraceful.”
The controversy arrives amid ongoing debates over U.S. policy toward Israel, growing divisions within the Democratic Party regarding the conflict in Gaza, and heightened concerns about antisemitism following a series of high-profile incidents across the country.
Mamdani has long been one of Israel’s most outspoken critics in American politics. He supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, and previously stated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should face arrest over alleged war crimes.
