New York City mayoral candidate Zahran Mamdani is facing criticism over the resurfacing of the video
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New York City mayoral candidate Zahran Mamdani is facing criticism over a resurfaced video in which he claims to be a victim of anti-Muslim discrimination in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks.
The video shows Mamdani speaking to voters during his campaign for New York State Assembly in February 2020. He describes a number of instances of alleged discrimination against him and says there are “exceptions” to tolerance in America.
Mamdani claims that his school teacher pulled him and another student out of class on September 11 and warned them that they might face bullying because of the attack.
In another case, he says he was stopped at an airport when he was 15 and returning to the United States with his family. He says security met him in a private room and asked him if he had gone to a terrorist training camp.
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Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zahran Mamdani speaks in the Bronx on Friday, October 24, 2025. (Fox News Digital/Deirdre Heavy)
“In Uganda, I was Indian. In India, I was Muslim, and then, when we moved to New York, I was all those things. New York still has something that makes us all believe that we too can be New Yorkers, no matter where you come from or who you are….” Mamdani says in the video.
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“However, there were multiple moments in my childhood where I was reminded that this promise comes with exceptions,” he said.
Zahran Mamdani was confronted by protesters in Manhattan over his refusal to completely disavow Hezbollah, as security formed a protective barrier around the social democrat. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Conservative activist Amy Meek was the first to share the video in 2020, drawing attention to it again on Saturday amid Mamdani’s run for mayor.
“Five years ago, New York City warned that Zahran Mamdani was not a progressive, but rather a Marxist jihadist political asset using the trauma of 9/11 as a weapon to get votes,” Mick wrote on X.
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Mamdani is running for mayor against former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent. (Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images)
Fox News Digital has reached out to Mamdani’s campaign for comment.
The video comes after Mamdani faced similar criticism for claiming that his aunt stopped riding the subway in New York City after the events of September 11.
Mamdani said he and his family experienced an “undercurrent of suspicion” in the city.
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Vice President J.D. Vance walked back the narrative in a post on X.
“According to Zahran, the real victim of 9/11 was his aunt who got some (alleged) bad looks,” Vance said.
Fox News’ Greg Norman contributed to this report.