Political rancor is threatening to cast a long shadow over this year's , marking 25 years since the tragedy that rocked the United States. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's past rhetoric and links to terror sympathizers are spurring intense backlash ahead of the city's events memorializing the World Trade Center attacks, with Republicans and people whose lives were changed by the attacks demanding he not attend.
Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Accurso, appeared to address the controversy on the eve of the memorial in a writing in a statement shown in a screencap, "Mayor Mamdani is awesome. I’ve met him, and he truly cares about New Yorkers. He’s such a kind, gentle soul. Our NYC Pre-K curriculum teaches children to be kind, respect different religions and cultures, and be proud of who they are. "
"It’s unacceptable that adults still judge, hate and attack each other because of religion and skin color. We should be setting a better example for our children," she concluded.
9/11 FAMILIES PUSH TO BAN MAMDANI FROM 25TH ANNIVERSARY REMEMBRANCE OVER
'HOSTILE'
RECORD
There has been widespread controversy about Mamdani being associated with any 9/11 memorials, based on his own politics and that of his associates.
"Mr. Mamdani has praised Brooklyn Imam Siraj Wahhaj, who has been linked to radical Islam, was named as an alleged co-conspirator in the , and served as a character witness for the 'Blind Sheikh,' who was convicted in 1995 of plotting terror attacks against the United States," the petition said.
"Mr. Mamdani has endorsed candidates such as Aber Kawas, who described 9/11 as an attack 'a couple of people did in the context of U.S. capitalism, racism, White supremacy, and Islamophobia,' and who also expressed sympathy for Ahmed Ferhani, who pleaded guilty to plotting to blow up a Manhattan synagogue," it added.
Mamdani and other socialist candidates' association with far-left activist Hasan Piker has also seen intense scrutiny over Piker's past comments that the United States "deserved" the attacks, remarks that he promptly walked back at the time but continue to haunt him and his political circle. Mamdani himself has also condemned the comment.
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Mamdani had handed the pen to his . Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, who pleaded guilty to war-crime charges tied to al Qaeda plots against commercial ships and was the brother-in-law of Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon, killing 184.
Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani’s office and did not receive an immediate response.
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Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind, Amanda Macias and Matthew Donnell contributed to this report.