‘Profound Failure’: NYC Jewish Groups Blast Mamdani for Vetoing School Safety Measure

(AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) received a stern rebuke from some of the city’s leading Jewish groups on Friday after he decided to veto a measure aimed at enhancing safety for Jewish schools and institutions.

A joint statement was put out by the UJA-Federation of New York, Conference of Presidents, ADL New York/New Jersey, AJC New York, Orthodox Union, JCRC-NY, New York Board of Rabbis, Teach NYS, The Rabbinical Assembly, StandWithUs, and Union for Reform Judaism, which read:

We are deeply disappointed by Mayor Mamdani’s decision to veto Intro 175, legislation that would have required clear, coordinated safety plans around schools and learning institutions. At a time when Jewish and other communities across our city are facing heightened threats, this legislation represented a crucial step toward ensuring that every school and community institution can be better protected.

Measures like these importantly safeguard institutions against real and growing threats while maintaining people’s right to protest. Actions speak louder than words. This veto is a profound failure of City Hall to demonstrate to all New Yorkers that our safety is a priority. We thank Speaker Menin and Councilmember Dinowitz for their leadership and unwavering commitment to the safety of New Yorkers.

The bill would require the NYPD to create buffer zones between sensitive institutions and planned protests in order to avoid violent clashes. Mamdani said when announcing the veto, his first, that he worried the bill created “constitutional concerns … regarding New Yorkers’ fundamental right to protest.”

“As the bill is written, everywhere from universities to museums to teaching hospitals could face restrictions,” he said claiming that the buffer zones could “impact workers protesting ICE, or college students demanding their school divest from fossil fuels or demonstrating in support of Palestinian rights.”

Mamdani did sign into law a second bill, which specifically created buffer zones for houses of worship.

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin released a statement following Mamdani’s veto, saying, “Ensuring students can enter and exit their schools without fear of harassment or intimidation should not be controversial. This bill simply requires the NYPD to clearly outline how it will ensure safe access when there are threats of obstruction or physical injury, while fully protecting First Amendment rights.”

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