Chaos unfolded in Lower Manhattan on what should have been a somber Friday, as pardoned Jan. 6 insurrectionist Jake Lang and his band of far-right extremists attempted to march on the 9/11 Memorial in an act of hate against Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Lang, a far-right propagandist and provocateur, unleashed a day-long showcase of Islamophobic acts against Mamdani just blocks away from the hallowed ground where nearly 2,800 people were killed in a terrorist attack 25 years ago Friday — simply because Hizzoner happens to be Muslim.
Dozens of Lang’s supporters, however, were met with a group of counterprotesters outside City Hall just before 11 a.m. Tensions quickly boiled over; fights erupted between the groups despite police efforts to separate them with barricades. Two men were quickly hauled away in handcuffs.
Although cops attempted to split the groups up with barricades, tensions boiled over and fights erupted. Two men ended up being hauled away in handcuffs before the protest even began.Photo by Dean Moses 
Although cops attempted to split the groups up with barricades, tensions boiled over and fights erupted. Two men ended up being hauled away in handcuffs before the protest even began.Photo by Dean Moses
About an hour later, Lang occupied City Hall Park, where he held signs calling for the deportation of Muslims and the mayor himself while chanting, “Do you remember?” — a reference to the 9/11 terror attacks.
Meanwhile, everyday New Yorkers were not having it and attempted to surround the bigot. Some yelled at him, “Get out of New York.”
Lang said he planned to march to the 9/11 Memorial, with the apparent goal of disrupting that morning’s 25th anniversary observance of the 9/11 attacks and the somber reading of the victims’ names by family and friends of those killed in the attacks.
Fuming locals attempted to get at Lang with the apparent intention of tearing him apart. However, NYPD officers created a human shield around him, preventing him from being injured.
Lang marched through the streets holding a large wooden cross while others brandished white nationalist imagery, including a Crusader helmet. Cops would not allow the hate march to pass beyond Church and Cortlandt Streets, in order to avoid disturbing the ceremony and mourning families.
Across the street from Lang, several individuals could be seen wearing red armbands and performing a Nazi salute. These individuals appeared to be with a separate group and not afflicted with Lang.
Lang remained at the intersection for more than an hour before fleeing into a bus as New Yorkers gave chase. He could be seen hanging out of the vehicle’s open door as it sped away.
Lang stayed at the intersection for over an hour until he fled into a bus as New Yorkers gave chase.Photo by Dean Moses 
He could be seen hanging out of the vehicle’s open door as it sped away.Photo by Dean Moses 
He could be seen hanging out of the vehicle’s open door as it sped away.Photo by Dean Moses