Mamdani is Right to Pay Homage to Intolerance after 9/11

Many of the usual suspects are trying to frame Mamdani’s speech to New York’s Muslim community out of context. Mamdani spoke about Islamophobia in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, noting how his aunt was too afraid to ride the subway due to wearing an hijab. He asked for a moment of silence for all victims of the intolerance and hatred which was so prevalent in New York and America at the time that some were even killed, despite not even being Muslim themselves. Bad faith actors have tried to portray his comments as equating victims of bigotry with victims of terror. There is no comparison, nor was one made, however they too are victims of that period in time and it deserves to be called out!

It is beyond time for New Yorkers to apologize and make amends for that treatment. This treatment was not an isolated incident, most Muslims, Sikhs and other Arab-looking residents of the city suffered tremendous injustice on a daily basis.

I went to High School about thirty minutes from the World Trade Center site on Long Island (right on the border of the city). Many people in my school lost people on 9/11. My hometown is in the top ten for most victims of the attacks when excluding New York City proper. A teammate of mine lost her aunt, uncle and father all in one day. My father worked in the FDNY and I barely saw him after 9/11 because he was working at Ground Zero. In the wake of the attacks, everybody wore NYPD, FDNY and military shirts and hoodies. People felt like they were being patriotic, and today many talk about this time where everyone came together. That is just revisionist history, people came together and excluded Muslims and other Middle Eastern looking individuals entirely.

This mythical 9/12 world conservatives love to talk about, as a time of unity, was the first time I witnessed outright racism in my high school, and it would be the first of a near daily occurrence. Our school was host to a large Sikh and Pakistani community. Any time one of those students walked down the halls, the jocks (mostly white) would start a “woop woop” call, emulating the start of the NYPD siren. When one of them started, the rest would join in, mocking the sirens until it became a racist cacophony. This happened almost every day. Teachers did nothing, claiming they were being patriotic, not harassing students. Nothing could be further from the truth! This was only ever done around those students, and comments like “where’s your airplane” or “where’s Osama” or “let’s check his locker for Osama” would inevitably follow.

Today, two of the most vocal participants in that racism are New York City police officers. How can we expect such people to protect and serve when they have such a history of profound racism and intolerance? I’m sure many would ask, “where were you when this was happening?” The truth is I was absolutely bullied by these goons too. However, it’s true, most girls wouldn’t say anything, others would even laugh in encouragement. Silence is consent, and I do regret not saying anything and pushing back on just how normalized this had become. In many ways, I was also selfish in that it was one less comment directed at me.

That’s why everyone needs to support Mamdani’s efforts to call out this painful period in New York history. Every Muslim person was humiliated to one degree or another after the attacks. They largely suffered in silence for fear of the same miscast judgment currently being lobbed at Mamdani for simply stating facts and being empathetic to a community who also had to grieve. These people also worked in the Towers, many also served in the NYPD or EMS. Yet, they were treated as others. They were not apart of that mythical “9/12 America,” because every day after 9/11 they too had to watch their backs for attacks, attacks from within. To give voice to that community that has largely been ignored for what they endured makes me proud to support Mamdani and I look forward to him becoming mayor of New York, a New York which will truly be for everyone.