Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan called New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani an \u201cenemy\u201d of Jews and accused him of normalizing antisemitism as he urged the Jewish community to confront the far-left pol directly.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone who uses antisemitism in their campaign and normalizes antisemitism, he is our enemy,\u201d Rowan proclaimed Monday night<\/a> at a packed dinner hosted by UJA-Federation Wall Street.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should make no mistake, we face challenges at home. I don\u2019t think we have to wait to know,\u201d said the exec, who chairs UJA-Federation of New York\u2019s board along with running one of the world\u2019s biggest asset managers.<\/p>\n Nearly 2,000 people attended the dinner at the Marriott Marquis, which raised $57 million for pro-Israel causes, according to Jewish Insider<\/a>.<\/p>\n Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan tore into New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani at a packed UJA-Federation Wall Street dinner on Monday night. UJA-Federation of New York \/ Instagram<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to be the ones to call him out. We need to say it. And I know that UJA, as it relates to the Jewish community, is going to do that,\u201d Rowan said of Mamdani, a Muslim and Democratic socialist who takes office Jan. 1.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s inflammatory statements about Israel and Zionism have drawn heavy criticism from high-profile Jewish leaders and major Jewish organizations, including the American Jewish Committee.<\/p>\n The mayor-elect has described Israeli policy toward Palestinians as \u201cgenocide\u201d and \u201capartheid\u201d and has failed to condemn the chant \u201cglobalize the intifada,\u201d <\/a>which pro-Israel groups say evokes violence against Jews.<\/p>\n Since Hamas\u2019 terrorist attacks<\/a> on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Rowan, 62, has thrown himself into the fight against rising antisemitism in politics, philanthropy and higher education<\/a>. He demanded University of Pennsylvania ditch<\/a> President Liz Magill and\u00a0Scott Bok, chair of the board of trustees, over the institution\u2019s failure to condemn those attacks. The duo resigned months later.<\/p>\n \u201cSomeone who uses antisemitism in their campaign and normalizes antisemitism, he is our enemy,\u201d Rowan said of Mamdani on Monday night. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n At the Monday dinner, Rowan said the community must \u201cshow up\u201d and maintain a \u201cbig tent,\u201d but also be clear about identifying \u201cenemies\u201d when necessary.<\/p>\n \u201cMake no mistake, these could potentially be dark times,\u201d he told the crowd, warning of threats from both the far left and far right.<\/p>\n Rowan said the community must recognize personal risks taken by Jewish leaders and build alliances with outside groups who share their values.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have plenty of enemies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Rowan, a UPenn graduate, was a leading critic of the university\u2019s handling of pro-Palestine protests on campus. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n While some Wall Street executives<\/a> have signaled they would seek cooperation with the incoming mayor, many business leaders have voiced dread of Mamdani\u2019s mayorality.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tCharlie Gasparino has his finger on the pulse of where business, politics and finance meet\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up to receive On The Money by Charlie Gasparino in your inbox every Thursday.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \u201cCome for the communism, stay for the globalizing of the intifada. Shrewd, New York City,\u201d\u00a0hedge fund titan Cliff Asness\u00a0sarcastically said last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n