StandWithUs condemns Mayor Mamdani’s decision to revoke Mayor Adams’ executive order adopting the IHRA working definition of antisemitism on his first day in office.

The mayor also revoked NYPD directives designed to ensure safe perimeters around houses of worship during protests, compounding concerns that longstanding protections for Jewish institutions and communities are being systematically rolled back.

Decisions made on day one set the tone for an administration. At a moment of rising antisemitic violence, revoking a widely accepted definition sends a signal of disengagement rather than resolve. Protecting Jewish New Yorkers requires clarity and consistency, not ambiguity.

The IHRA definition reflects how the vast majority of Jews experience antisemitism today and is widely used to identify and combat this hatred worldwide. Whether the mayor likes it or not, it is a fact that demonizing the world’s only Jewish state, discriminating against it, and denying its right to exist are all forms of bigotry against Jews.

StandWithUs urges the mayor to reverse this decision. Discarding the IHRA definition sends a dangerous message at a time of escalating violence against Jews in New York City and beyond.

While Mayor Mamdani has repeatedly pledged to protect the Jewish community, he cannot do so if certain types of antisemitism are given a free pass. 

Now is the time for his administration to demonstrate, through action, that New York City will fight this hatred in all its forms—not only those that are politically convenient for the mayor.