If you’ve had it with the endless parade of new “phobias,” you’re not alone. Say no to biological males in women’s sports and—bam—you’re instantly transphobic. It’s the left’s favorite guilt weapon, used to shame those who dare to think for themselves. Another overused cudgel is Islamophobia, and, of course, NYC mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani is swinging it with gusto.
The controversial candidate’s latest campaign video is a true masterclass in tone-deaf displays of grievance politics. It’s a pathetic, performative lament about “Islamophobia” at odds with the lived reality of Muslims in America today. His tear-streaked monologue, delivered outside a Bronx mosque on the eve of early voting, cast himself as both victim and martyr, lamenting a city that, in his telling, met him with suspicion at every turn. “No more shadows,” Mamdani proclaimed. “We will stand in the light.”
Give me a break and a pulled-pork sandwich.
Let’s be honest here. The data doesn’t back up the narrative Mamdani is selling. As of 2024, nearly 60 percent of adult Muslim Americans were first-generation immigrants. Imagine that, claiming that America is so hostile to Muslims, they come to this country in large numbers. Why is that? Perhaps it’s because they find it welcoming, prosperous, and free? And according to a 2022 survey by the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, Muslims were actually the most optimistic faith group about the direction of the country, outpacing Protestants, Catholics, and the general population. For a community supposedly crushed by bigotry, that’s quite the contradiction.
Yet Mamdani insists otherwise. “Six years ago, shortly after I announced I was running for Assembly,” he said, “a well-meaning Muslim uncle pulled me aside… and told me I did not have to tell people I was Muslim.” The story, meant to evoke generational trauma, quickly slid into melodrama. “It is the lesson that safety could only be found in the shadows of our city,” Mamdani intoned, “that it is in those shadows alone where Muslims could embrace the fullness of our own identities.” Never mind that New York City has more mosques than any other state in the country and is home to more than 700,000 Muslim residents who openly live their faith without fear.
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Mamdani’s laundry list of grievances grew longer as he recounted supposed slights from rivals. “Yesterday,” he said, “Andrew Cuomo laughed and agreed when a radio show host said that I would cheer another 9/11. Yesterday, Eric Adams said that we can’t let our city become Europe. He compared me to violent extremists.” Cuomo’s team called the clip a bad joke made by the host and taken out of context. But Mamdani seized the moment, framing any criticism as proof of systemic Islamophobia: “Super PAC ads imply that I am a terrorist or mock the way I eat… push polls ask New Yorkers if they support invented proposals to make halal mandatory.”
What he won’t tell you the problem isn’t bigotry, it’s the expectation that Americans must conform to the cultural values of Muslims who are here. Some Muslims have pushed hard to bend schools, workplaces, and public spaces to their beliefs. Hijabs in classrooms, halal-only meals, gender-segregated seating, prayer rooms on campus, and campaigns to censor “offensive” content—these aren’t isolated incidents. It’s a pattern of demanding others conform while claiming tolerance.
Heck, even owning a dog can set them off. Take Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in 2011, a man’s Muslim neighbors poisoned his dog with antifreeze, because their religion considers dogs unclean. The harassment didn’t stop there—they spray-painted black crescent shapes on his lawn, leading to charges of animal cruelty and intimidation.
And it kept getting more insulting. “We know that in less than two weeks we will say goodbye to a disgraced former governor and our current indicted mayor,” Mamdani thundered. “The bigger question is whether we are willing to say goodbye to something much larger… to anti-Muslim sentiment.” He closed with, “I will not change who I am. I will not change the faith I am proud to belong to. But there is one thing I will change. I will no longer look for myself in the shadows. I will find myself in the light.”
Read between the lines, folks: what Mamdani’s really saying is, vote for me—or you’re an Islamophobic bigot. It’s the same tired leftist playbook we’ve seen a thousand times before. The truth is, America is not some hotbed of anti-Muslim hate—it’s one of the most tolerant nations on earth. Muslims have come here in huge numbers, opened businesses, built mosques in every major city, and even run for mayor of New York. That doesn’t happen in a country consumed by “Islamophobia.”
What we have seen, however, is a growing push for Americans to bend to Islamic cultural norms, and the moment anyone objects, the left screeches “bigotry.” It’s manipulative and dishonest. The very fact that Mamdani can give a speech like this—on a major stage, broadcast nationwide—proves just how bogus his victim narrative really is. In a truly hateful country, he wouldn’t have a platform at all.
