Manhattan, NY — A week from Friday marks 25 years since the September 11th terror attacks in the United States.
As New York State and the rest of the country will remember the lives lost, there are also conversations about how remembrance ceremonies should be held, and who should attend them.
Some family members of 9/11 victims have called for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to not attend the ceremony at Ground Zero. They say they’re concerned about his association with influencer Hasan Piker, a Twitch streamer who has said the United States deserved 9/11 in the past. Piker would walk back those comments. Mamdani called Piker’s original comments “reprehensible” during a Mayoral debate in the Fall.
Regardless, some, like former Governor George Pataki, say Mamdani should not attend the 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at Ground Zero until he does more.
Here were Pataki’s full comments to CBS6’s Tom Eschen on Thursday morning:
“I’m not a fan of Mayor Mamdani, not because he’s a Muslim, but because I think he’s a neo-Marxist and I think his policies are wrong. I’m an inclusive guy. I don’t think you exclude someone because they disagree with you politically. But having said that, I have reservations because this is not a government event. This is a public event held by the Memorial, and its purpose is to honor those who died, and particularly to pay respects to the families who will be there. There will be thousands of family members there who are still mourning, and whose suffering is far greater than someone like me might feel who lost friends as opposed to brother or daughter or son. So, out of respect for them, if the Mayor is going to be there, he should reject anything to do with Hasan Piker, this influencer who has claimed publicly that we deserved the attacks of September 11th? Anybody who associates with someone like that shouldn’t be there. And the second thing, which is troubling to me, is Mayor Mamdani refuses to condemn the expression ‘globalize the Intifada,’ and that quite clearly means attack Jews, not just in Israel, but anywhere in the world. Unless he is prepared to say, you know, ‘yes, I’m a Muslim, but I totally reject the use of violence against anyone, and particularly against Jews,’ then I have reservations as to whether or not he should be there. Rejecting violence is not that hard to do if you believe in the rule of law. How could a Mayor not believe in the rule of law? And ‘globalize the Intifada’ is something that, to me, I’m not Jewish, but if I were, I take great fear from that because it’s clear what it means is use violence against Jews, not just in Israel but anywhere, and he refuses to reject that term. So, given that, if he did that, I would welcome him there. If he doesn’t do that, I have reservations.”
You can watch more of Pataki’s comments below, along with his thoughts on President Donald Trump not attending the Ground Zero ceremony, instead opting to speak at the Pentagon.
Pataki: NYC Mayor needs to reject Piker, condemn ‘globalize the intifada’, before 9/11
The full conversation with Governor Pataki, reflecting on the 25th Anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks, will be available next week.