A group representing New York’s black clergy is rallying around Israel and demanding the Queens pol reject the Democratic Socialist of America for its support of Hamas.
The Reverend Johnny Green, president of Mobilizing Preachers and Communities, representing 300 synagogues in the region, sent a letter urging Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani to sever ties with the DSA for organizing rallies where protesters cheered the slaughter of Jews by Hamas.
Mamdani, who represents Astoria and western Queens, also joined a pro-Palestinian rally in the wake of Hamas’ sneak attacks on Israel, killing more than 1,400 Israelis and taking nearly 200 others hostage.
“This is a moment to consider what is right — when being an elected official takes courage — we hope you will leave DSA. Like you, the DSA stands firm while its membership makes inflammatory and hateful statements. The day after the terrorist attack, the DSA promoted a hateful rally, where people were filmed displaying swastikas,” Green said in a letter to the MP.
Green noted that other progressive politicians, such as city Comptroller Brad Lander, condemned Hamas’ killings and kidnappings of Israelis as “heinous” and said “there is no place to glorify violence.”
The preacher said the DSA had only issued a “warm apology” following national outrage over the hateful rally. Leftist groups do not condemn Hamas.
Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani has been urged to sever ties from the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of American over the group’s support for Hamas.Zohran Kwame Mamdani/facebook
DSA’s first statement after the Hamas attack on Israel expressed “solidarity with the Palestinians” and blamed the slaughter on the victims’ elected government, saying it was a “direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime.”
DSA New York City Chapter — party Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Jamaal Bowman, Mamdani and several dozen other prominent New York politicians — have announced a rally in Times Square, just hours after Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel.
Mamdani’s first statement did not condemn Hamas and instead said that “peace can only begin with ending the occupation and destroying apartheid.” He also called for a ceasefire.
DSA New York City organized a pro-Palestinian protest in Times Square on October 8, 2023.James Keivom
Green also criticized Mamdani for previously comparing House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who is black, to the isolation of George Wallace because Jeffries was a staunch supporter of the Jewish state.
last november, Mamdani tweets, “After at least 2,251 Palestinians were killed throughout July 2014, Hakeem Jeffries took the stage at a rally in NYC and drew a George Wallace likeness. ‘Israel today, Israel tomorrow, Israel forever.’”
“If Jeffries is considered a progressive,” says Mamdani, “the term has lost all meaning.”
Someone who displayed a swastika at the Time Square rally.Stuart Meissner
Green said, “Black clergy and other leaders have not forgotten how appallingly you compared Leader Jeffries to the bigoted former Alabama Governor George Wallace. Someone who makes such a comparison seeks to keep our black leaders and people ‘on the farm’ and not allies to help us get away from it.”
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“We demand the immediate withdrawal of your baseless comparison between Hakeem Jeffries and George Wallace, that you denounce the international terrorist organization Hamas, and that you leave DSA,” Green said.
Meanwhile, civil rights activist Al Sharpton, the preacher who heads the National Action Network, also condemned Hamas’ terrorist attacks on the Jewish state.
Rev. Johnny Green, president of Mobilizing Preachers and Communities, has called on Mamdani to leave DSA.GN Miller/New York Post
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“What happened was not activism. It is not militant. It was absolute murder,” Sharpton said Monday on MSNBC.
At least 1,400 people in Israel and 2,808 in Gaza have been killed since Hamas launched a surprise attack on the Jewish state on Oct. 7.
As the war enters its 10th day, President Biden is set to visit Israel on Wednesday. His trip comes as the Israel Defense Forces prepare to invade Gaza to purge Hamas.
Mamdani did not have any immediate comment.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
