Jewish legal groups protest absence of Jews from Mamdani advisory panel

Four prominent Jewish legal groups have voiced strong objections to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's newly formed judicial advisory committee, citing the apparent absence of any Jewish members among its 18 appointees.

Leaders of the Jewish bar associations penned a letter to Mamdani on Monday, expressing dismay that the committee, intended to be "truly reflective of New York City," included "not a single Jewish attorney, former judge, or legal professional." They also condemned the "unprecedented rejection" of retired Appellate Division Justice John Leventhal.

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Not a single Jewish attorney, former judge, or legal professional was appointed to a committee your administration described as one that would be ‘truly reflective of New York City.’

A spokesperson for the mayor's office dismissed the accusations, stating to The New York Times that any suggestion of religious motivation behind the appointments was "false." The spokesperson added that Leventhal's application was declined after it was revealed he had "served on Ghislaine Maxwell’s legal team."

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the accusation the appointments were ‘motivated by religion is false.’

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal is under fire for an op-ed titled "Mamdani’s Antisemitic Smoke Signals." The article featured a controversial image depicting the mayor wearing a Hamas headband. Mamdani's communications director, Anna Bahr, denounced the image as "incredibly Islamophobic."

These controversies unfold against a backdrop of rising antisemitism in the city. Official NYPD statistics show that anti-Jewish incidents constitute over half of New York City's hate crimes this year, with 181 incidents reported since January 1.

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This is not the sexiest event in town. It’s not like Dua Lipa or some s–t. It’s just a bunch of old Jewish people playing music for other Jewish nerds like me.