NEW YORK, NY (October 24, 2025) — In response to recent Islamophobic rhetoric and insinuations made by mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo against Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, the public education advocacy organization Alliance for Quality Education released the following statement:
“AQE condemns in the strongest terms the Islamophobic attacks and insinuations directed at Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani. The rhetoric used by mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo is baseless, inflammatory, and dangerous, and it puts the lives of Muslim New Yorkers at risk,” said Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari and Marina Marcou-O’Malley, Co-Executive Directors, Alliance for Quality Education.
“More than 100,000 Muslim children attend New York City’s public schools, and almost a million Muslims call this city home. Targeting one of our leaders with hateful language endangers these communities and undermines the safety and dignity of all New Yorkers. When someone with Andrew Cuomo’s public profile spreads Islamophobic rhetoric, it normalizes hate, invites harm, and mirrors the dangerous escalation coming from the federal government. Our civic leaders have a responsibility to protect the public, not endanger us.
“Islamophobia has deep roots in this country that long predate September 11, 2001. It is built on the xenophobia and racism of generations that sought to define who is “American” and who is pushed to the margins. This discrimination weakens our democracy and harms the pursuit of justice that AQE works toward every day in our schools, neighborhoods, and public life.
“Our elected officials, civic leaders, and all New Yorkers with a public platform have a duty to speak out clearly and forcefully against Islamophobia, racism, and hate, not only in this election but wherever it appears. New York’s commitments to justice mean nothing if hatred is allowed to take root.”