Fact Check: Was Zohran Mamdani's wife Rama Duwaji caught laughing at 9/11 attack video?
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Amid the backlash after Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were caught giggling at the 9/11 anniversary event at Ground Zero, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that Mamdani’s wife, Rama Duwaji, was caught laughing at the video of the tragic event.
The claim has sparked speculation, requiring a fact-check.
Claim: Rama Duwaji caught laughing at 9/11 video
According to a viral claim that surfaced on Facebook, Mamdani’s wife was seen “laughing and joking” at videos of the World Trade Center towers falling.
The post was accompanied by a link to an article that stated that a disturbing video has emerged showing Mamdani’s wife laughing and joking while watching footage of the September 11th attacks.
According to the article, the video of Duwaji was captured at a Brooklyn coffee shop by a journalist on the anniversary of the attacks. It further stated that the video has sparked outrage among 9/11 survivors and has called for the mayor’s resignation.
Comments under the post suggest that many appeared to believe the claim to be true, while a few others remained skeptical.
Fact Check: The claim originated from a parody account
However, the claim is false, as there are no reports or footage that suggest Duwaji was caught laughing at the 9/11 videos. There are no publicly available reports or videos that support the claim about New York City’s first lady.
If the claim were true, it would not go unreported by prominent news media outlets, making headlines and triggering massive backlash against Duwaji, but a search on Google and other search engines for the claim yielded no credible reports.
Moreover, the claim was accompanied by a photo of Duwaji with overlay text in the bottom corner stating, ‘Nothing on this page is real.’ Another such text states, ‘The Dunning-Kruger Times,’ which is a popular online satirical newspaper.
Zohran Mamdani and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez caught giggling at Ground Zero event
The claim surfaced after Mamdani and Ocasio-Cortez were caught in an apparently lighthearted moment during the annual reading of the victims’ names at Ground Zero, as victims’ relatives gathered to honor those they had lost.
Footage from the scene appeared to show the two smiling and giggling together, while families of the victims could be seen crying as the names of their loved ones were announced, sparking criticism.
