Mayor of New York City (NYC) Zohran Mamdani attended a Pakistan Independence Day celebration this week, months after becoming the first New York mayor in more than six decades to skip the city’s annual Israel Day parade.
Speaking at the event, Mamdani greeted the audience with “As-salamu alaykum” before thanking members of the Pakistani community for welcoming him.
“It is such a privilege to be back here with all of you,” he said.
The mayor was introduced as New York City’s first immigrant mayor before taking the stage.
During his speech, Mamdani acknowledged several city officials and community representatives, including Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, Hassan Nasir Awan, the youth wing director of the Allama Iqbal Community Center (AICC) and Muhammad Nasir Awan, the centre’s chairman.
His appearance at the Pakistan Independence Day event came a few months after he chose not to attend New York City’s Israel Day parade in May.
The annual event has long been considered a political tradition in New York, with mayors, governors and other elected officials regularly participating in the parade.
Mamdani had announced during his mayoral campaign that he would not attend the event because of his opposition to the Israeli government’s policies, especially its genocide in Gaza.
“I said on the campaign trail that I wouldn’t be attending the parade, and I’ve made my views on the Israeli government abundantly clear,” Mamdani said before the event.
