New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a new plan on Tuesday to fight antisemitism. The plan includes a huge jump in funding, rising from $3 million to $29 million a year. Yet the mayor left out a key detail that many people expected. According to Fox News, the plan does not include a formal definition for antisemitism. The strategy document notes that useful definitions exist but says the administration will not adopt any of them.
“New York City can and will leverage all of the tools at its disposal to combat antisemitism effectively without needing to adopt a definition for this specific form of hate,” the framework states. This approach draws a sharp line between enforcing laws and setting a standard for what hate looks like. Federal hate crime statutes also do not use a standalone definition of discrimination. The city will instead rely on existing laws against bias based on race, religion, or national origin.
The numbers behind this push are stark and hard to ignore. In the first eight months of 2026, hate crimes in the city rose 16 percent compared to last year. Police reports show 181 hate crimes against Jews, and 131 of those are felony offenses. Other groups saw far fewer incidents, with 29 against the homosexual community and 21 against Muslims.
Mamdani said in a strategy document that his administration has a duty to keep Jewish residents safe. “My administration has a responsibility to ensure New York City remains a place where Jewish New Yorkers can live their lives peacefully and safely,” he said. He added that too many Jewish New Yorkers feel they can no longer take that promise for granted. The mayor framed this as the start of a larger effort to protect the community from rising violence.
The proposal sets aside specific amounts for local projects to honor history and culture. The plan designates $2 million for the Queens Holocaust memorial. It also sets aside $2.5 million for the Center for New Jewish Culture in Brooklyn. These funds aim to build physical spaces that remind people of past tragedies and the value of Jewish life. The strategy also creates new pathways for cooperation between the NYPD and human rights groups.
This move puts renewed scrutiny on the city’s first Muslim mayor as he faces claims that he lacks support for Jewish people. The plan tries to undercut those allegations while avoiding a political fight over definitions. Mamdani said in a strategy document that he would fight antisemitism with urgency and resolve. He promised to do so in solidarity with many other communities who also face hatred.
