NYC councilwoman rips Mayor Mamdani’s antisemitism office as a ‘black hole’
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As anti-Israel agitators take to the streets in New York City, a councilman calls out the Mayor’s Office to Combat Anti-Semitism and says there are no publicly available resources.
“Mayor Mamdani continues to shine a light on the Jewish community in New York City by creating a black hole in an office (the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism) that has no website, no phone number and no resources,” New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, R-District 48, told Fox News Digital. “There’s no one to reach out to, there’s no one to talk to. The public has no idea how this office can help Jewish New Yorkers.”
The councilman said he felt “the office is doing nothing to combat antisemitism” after a recent hearing.
However, Vernikov stated that the problem is not just an issue of access, stating that even those who reached out to the mayor’s office “did not receive an answer that would make them feel safer or make their children feel safer.”
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NYC Councilwoman Inna Vernikov says Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s anti-Semitism office is a “black hole” without resources. (Fox News Digital/Getty)
Vernikov, a Jewish Republican, serves with Assemblyman Eric Dinowitz, D-District 11, as co-chairman of a bipartisan task force aimed at combating antisemitism. The task force, created earlier this year, is separate from the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism.
an online search for Mayor’s Office to Combat Anti-Semitism It leads to a page on the New York City government website that includes a press release announcing the office, a description of its goals, and a list of “recent events and services.” One item on the list of events and services is a “listening tour,” the findings of which will be used to “inform a report and subsequent strategy on combating antisemitism in New York City.”
Other events and services include Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s visit to the Jewish Children’s Museum in Crown Heights, Passover Stretchers, Food Distribution with Chasdei Lev, and an Orthodox Community Leaders Roundtable.
VIDEO SHOWS CONFLICTS HELD OUTSIDE THE SYNAGOGUE AS THE ANTI-ISRAEL MOB EMERGED AT THE REAL ESTATE FAIR
Anti-Israel protesters gather at the “Stop the Sale of Stolen Palestinian Lands” protest against the “Great Israeli Real Estate” event for the sale of Palestinian lands at Park East Synagogue in Manhattan on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in New York City. (Selçuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
In recent weeks, New York City has seen numerous anti-Semitic incidents, including swastika graffiti in Queens and protests outside a synagogue in Manhattan and in a Jewish neighborhood of Brooklyn. Following the protest outside the Park East Synagogue in Manhattan, Mamdani said his administration was committed to ensuring New Yorkers can enter and exit houses of worship safely. But he said he “absolutely” opposed the incident at the synagogue, and critics interpreted that statement as support for the protesters.
In response to a reporter’s question, Mamdani said, “When we have a real estate fair that promotes the sale of land, which includes the sale of land in settlements in the occupied West Bank that violate international law, that is something I strongly disagree with.” The mayor added that he sees land sales as something “central to the ongoing effort to evict Palestinians from their homes.”
The protests’ close proximity to Jewish institutions has many Jewish New Yorkers fearing for their safety; Vernikov said he heard this from his constituents. Vernikov argued that the debate about where to hold protests is about preventing intimidation, not restricting freedoms.
“This has nothing to do with the First Amendment. It has everything to do with intimidating and harassing Jews, and that’s the only thing these protesters are fighting for,” Vernikov said.
NYPD increased security and established a perimeter around the Park East Synagogue at E. 67th and E. 68th Streets in Manhattan on May 5, 2026 in New York City. (Selçuk Acar/Anadolu)
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Amid protests and vandalism, Mamdani faced criticism for his decision to veto a bill that would create a “buffer zone” around educational institutions to protect them from protests. The City Council also passed a version of the bill that aimed to protect places of worship, but which Mamdani did not veto.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Mamdani’s office for comment.
