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Andrew Cuomo’s Speech on Antisemitism Got It Exactly Right
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks in front of stacks of medical protective supplies, during a news conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, in New York City, New York, amid the coronavirus outbreak, March 24, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Mike Segar / File.
“I am here to say that I am sorry. I am sorry for the pain and anguish you felt on October 7 and every day since. I’m sorry for any antisemitism you have experienced and the repugnant behavior of demonstrators masked as Hamas that you have endured. I’m sorry if you have not felt safe on the streets right here in your own hometown. … I’m sorry for my mistaken assumption that widespread antisemitism could never happen again in modern sophisticated, educated society, and certainly not in New York City.”
When I first found out that Andrew Cuomo was running for mayor — partially on a hard-hitting platform of combating antisemitism — I was more than a bit wary, as I suspect many New Yorkers were. Cuomo did not exactly make a graceful exit in 2021, wracked by allegations of sexual misconduct and nursing home deaths from Covid.
But then I heard the speech he gave on April 1 at the West Side Institutional Synagogue. It was everything we’ve been wanting to hear from every American and European leader since October 7 — but only a few were brave enough to state the obvious: the truth. And there’s no question that both Cuomo and his father, Mario, were strong on understanding that Zionism is a subset of liberalism; if you’re not a Zionist, you’re not a liberal.
Under Andrew Cuomo, New York became the first state to oppose the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, and then the first state to counter BDS by an executive order saying that if a company boycotts Israel, New York will boycott the company.
Cuomo didn’t just list all of the ways he will fight the surge of antisemitism in our schools and on our streets. He said the words that every New Yorker has been waiting to hear: With the largest Jewish population outside of Israel, “New York City should set the precedent” in fighting this century’s violent antisemitism.
According to Cuomo, “We must stop the disinformation being spoon fed in many of our educational institutions. … We must stop the flow of funding from countries dictating a biased curriculum. If they want to teach bias and misinformation, then it should be called for what it is … they must hold themselves to a higher standard or we will.”
Cuomo said that his administration will show no ambivalence in its full support of both Israel and Jews in the United States. “Any ambivalence by government officials will only fuel the opposition. And the truth is the forces of antisemitism and pro-Palestinian policies are organized, well funded, and mobilized, and have significant political strength, even right here in the city of New York.”
Cuomo then detailed the illiberal ideas of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA); two of his eight opponents are members of the DSA, the others could be called DSA-adjacent. “The DSA advocates that Israel is a racist apartheid state that is engaged in ethnic cleansing. On October 7th, they proclaimed ‘long live the resistance.’”
Meanwhile, one DSA Assemblyman proposed a bill that would revoke the not-for-profit designation of any organization that aided Israel.
“Remember this is happening here,” said Cuomo. “Silence is acceptance. This country made that mistake once and must never make it again.”
Nearly 7,000 Jewish city voters recently registered as Democrats ahead of the June mayoral primary. The number of registered Jewish Democrats in New York is now more than 600,000.
“No one should feel they should take off their yarmulke to walk down the street. No one should think they should put the Star of David inside their shirt. No one should feel the need to look over their shoulder leaving a synagogue. This city must ensure that you feel safe on every street every day, every hour. That must be the mandate. If you discriminate or harass an individual on the basis of their religion, or destroy property, that is illegal, and people must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. No more slaps on the wrist, no more excuses,” Cuomo added.
“New York would not be New York without the Jewish community,” he said. “It has been part of New York City since its first days on the tip of lower Manhattan when the first immigrants stepped off the boats. It’s our legacy at this pivotal moment. Let New York City set the international standard of a people, of a government, of a society that has zero tolerance for any antisemitic act of any kind. … As Rabbi [Jonathan] Sacks said, peace is a duet not a solo. It cannot be made by one side alone; if it could, it would’ve been made long ago.”
Karen Lehrman Bloch is editor in chief of White Rose Magazine. A different version of this article was published by The Jewish Journal.
The post Andrew Cuomo’s Speech on Antisemitism Got It Exactly Right first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.