Mamdani refuses to take the hint as 109K oppose 9/11 appearance, pushes ahead with his plans

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is moving ahead with plans to attend Friday’s 25th anniversary 9/11 remembrance ceremony at Ground Zero despite an online petition from relatives of attack victims that has now drawn 109,918 signatures.

The petition was delivered to City Hall on Tuesday, but Mamdani has continued appearing at 9/11-related events across the city and has made clear that he intends to be at the main ceremony on September 11.

Zohran Mamdani refuses to budge

Mamdani has given no public indication that the petition will alter his plans.

Instead, he has continued making appearances tied to the 9/11 anniversary and honoring those killed in the attacks.

In the days leading up to the 25th anniversary, the mayor visited firehouses that lost firefighters on September 11, attended memorial events and spoke about the first responders and families who have lived with the consequences of the attacks for a quarter-century.

On September 9, Mamdani joined NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch at One Police Plaza for the unveiling of a new 9/11 memorial.

During the event, he honored the officers who ran toward Ground Zero as others fled and paid tribute to the families of those killed that day and in the years that followed.

He has also shared tributes to the FDNY and NYPD, specifically remembering the 343 FDNY members killed on September 11 and the 23 NYPD officers who died that morning.

Mamdani has presented his participation in the commemorations as part of the responsibilities of his office, rather than a political statement and has continued to publicly mark the anniversary despite the petition calling for his exclusion.

9/11 families urge Mamdani to stay away

The petition was started by Giovanni Galante, whose wife, Grace Catherine Galante, was killed in the North Tower.

Galante and other relatives of victims argue that Mamdani's presence would be inappropriate because of his past political positions, associations, and comments that they say conflict with the principles the ceremony is meant to represent.

When the petition was delivered to City Hall on September 8, more than 100,000 people had already signed it.

The total has since risen to over 109,000, according to the figure at the time of filing this report.

The petition also invokes the writings and political views of Mamdani’s father, Mahmood Mamdani, as part of its argument about the mayor’s ideological background.

Former New York Gov George Pataki has also said Mamdani should not attend.

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani has separately criticized the mayor’s planned appearance.

Mamdani builds his own tribute

While the petition campaign has grown, Mamdani’s administration has simultaneously expanded its official 9/11 remembrance efforts.

On September 4, he signed an executive order establishing September 11 as New York City’s first official 'Day of Remembrance and Service'.

The order calls for moments of silence, memorial ceremonies, educational programming, and service opportunities while specifically honoring victims, first responders, survivors, and families affected by the attacks.

The mayor has also announced the release of more than 170,000 pages of city records concerning the aftermath of the attacks and Ground Zero air quality.

The records were released after a long legal fight over access to the documents.

Mamdani was nine years old when the attacks happened.

He has spoken about growing up in New York during the post-9/11 period and has repeatedly described September 11 as a defining moment in the city’s history.

His supporters say the campaign against his attendance unfairly turns a memorial into a political test. But for the families behind the petition, his presence itself is the issue.

And with the signature count increasing rapidly, Mamdani is showing no indication that he intends to step aside.

The mayor is expected at Ground Zero on Friday, where the names of the victims will be read as New York marks 25 years since the attacks.