Fifth Avenue was packed. The annual Israel Day parade rolled through Manhattan on Sunday, but one key figure was missing. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani stayed away, shattering a decades-old political tradition. Instead, his own police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, led the charge as grand marshal.
For generations, this parade has been a mandatory pit stop for any New York politician craving votes. You show up, you wave the flag, you smile. Not Mamdani. He signaled his boycott during his campaign, citing his stark opposition to the Israeli government. He stood by that promise.
His absence drew blood. Republican gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Blakeman didn’t hold back, branding the mayor an “anti-Semite” who coddles regimes in Iran and China while bashing the Middle East’s only democracy. “A wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Blakeman sneered.
Tisch, who is Jewish, stood right next to Mamdani at a press conference earlier in the week and made her stance clear. She would march. Proudly. And she did.
The political heavyweights still showed up in droves. Governor Kathy Hochul, Attorney General Letitia James, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer all marched. Schumer took the mic to warn against a toxic, internet-fueled spike in antisemitism. Lies spread fast now. Right to your phone.
Israeli UN Ambassador Danny Danon dismissed the mayor’s snub as a cheap political stunt. He pointed to the massive crowds lining the streets. The people showed up anyway. The message was clear: New York’s connection to Israel outlasts any single politician’s career.
