Zohran Mamdani, the presumptive Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, is facing growing backlash from top Democrats after refusing to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada”—a slogan widely viewed as a call for violence against Jews and the destruction of Israel.
During a contentious appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday, Mamdani was asked three separate times whether he would condemn the phrase, which has become a rallying cry at anti-Israel protests across the country. Each time, Mamdani deflected, saying, “It’s not language that I use,” but refusing outright to denounce it.
“Globalize the Intifada” is a call to violence. Full stop.
Words matter—whether Mamdani cares to believe that or not.
New Yorkers need to reject this lunatic. pic.twitter.com/xLk9kyR9vQ
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) June 30, 2025
Pressed by host Kristen Welker, who noted that many interpret the phrase as “a call to violence against Jews,” Mamdani pivoted to defending Mahmoud Khalil, a New Yorker recently sentenced for inciting violence and threats tied to protest activity. “I don’t believe that the role of the mayor is to police speech in the manner… of Donald Trump,” Mamdani responded, sidestepping the core concern.
The fallout was immediate.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), whose Brooklyn district includes a large Jewish population, issued a clear rebuke: “Globalizing the intifada… is not an acceptable phrasing.” Jeffries called on Mamdani to “clarify his position” and added that any mayor “has got to commit to the safety of all of the people of the city of New York.”
Asked if he would endorse Mamdani, Jeffries was noncommittal: “We don’t really know each other well… that’s the next step.”
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) was more direct. In an interview with WNYC, she warned that Mamdani’s rhetoric had already alarmed constituents. “The global intifada is a statement that means destroy Israel and kill all the Jews,” she said bluntly. “People who glorify the slaughter of Jews create fear in our communities.”
Rep. Laura Gillen (D-NY), a centrist from Long Island, went even further, calling Mamdani’s record “a deeply disturbing pattern of unacceptable antisemitic comments” and declaring him “the absolute wrong choice for New York.”
Hakeem Jeffries on Mamdani: “‘Globalizing the intifada’ by way of example is not an acceptable phrasing. He’s gonna have to clarify his position on that as he moves forward.” pic.twitter.com/TA9Hn6lFD9
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 29, 2025
Mamdani, a Queens assemblyman and outspoken member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won last week’s Democratic mayoral primary in a shocking upset. His victory has thrown the race into disarray. Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and former Governor Andrew Cuomo are both weighing independent bids, while Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels, is already campaigning hard on a law-and-order platform.
The phrase “globalize the intifada” has appeared on protest banners, murals, and social media posts from pro-Palestinian groups in the U.S., and is often accompanied by calls to abolish Israel and engage in resistance “by any means necessary.” Mamdani has consistently declined to disavow the slogan, even as violence against Jewish Americans has spiked in New York and other major cities.
His refusal to condemn the phrase has now forced a rare public fracture within the Democratic Party—one that could shape the outcome of the general election on November 4.
