Islamophobia Harms All Americans—But Mamdani Shows A Path Forward

Few in corporate media or the political establishment will acknowledge it, but Mamdani's response to the hate he's received is the answer to fixing our broken politics

I’ll be blunt. Last night’s mayoral debate involved Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa exchanging barbs about why it’s scary to elect an American Muslim to office. And we are all worse off for it. Sadly, the moderators were complicit. While they quickly fact checked Cuomo and Sliwa on their false statements about policy and numbers, they did little to nothing to fact check them on their anti-Muslim comments. That contrast encapsulates this harsh truth: In 2025 America, anti-Muslim bigotry and Islamophobia remain an accepted, even celebrated form of politics. But from that hate has emerged a response from Zohran Mamdani that is quite literally the solution to fixing our broken politics in America. What did Mamdani do that corporate media and establishment politics have completely missed? Let’s Address This.

Anti-Muslim Hate Harms All Americans

Zohran and I have much in common. We’re both immigrants. We’re both of South Asian descent. And we’ve both worked in American politics for most of our adult lives—he far more successfully. In my 15 years in this space as an American Muslim, I’ve learned that a politician may attack you on policy, but will definitely attack you on your faith and ethnicity. I’ve run against Democrats and Republicans, and every single candidate I’ve faced either openly or surreptitiously attacked me for my faith as a Muslim in America. Sliwa, a Republican, and Cuomo a Republican Independent, are using that exact strategy against the Democratic nominee, Zohran Mamdani.

This hate goes unchecked, and lowers the bar for acceptable politics. Bigotry never stays isolated to one demographic. It expands like a virus. Thus, we must recognize that the corporate media and establishment politician tolerance, even embrace, of anti-Muslim hate is a virus that harms every person in this country.

Cuomo and Sliwa’s Desperation

I have long said that attacks on policy differences are not only fair game, but an excellent and necessary way to distinguish yourself from your opponent. And you do that by elevating why you are the better candidate. You cannot run and win as just the “anti-other guy.” You must instead show voters what you are for.

Yet, when you visit Andrew Cuomo’s website the first thing you see is “Say No To Zo.”

That one idea sums up Cuomo’s entire platform—convince New Yorkers to vote for him by making them fear Muslims. Straight out of the post 9/11, birther movement, Muslim Ban, and the anti-Shariah playbooks, Cuomo is reminding voters that while he has nothing of substance to offer, at least he isn’t Muslim.

Here’s the thing. Cuomo is funded by billionaires, and worse, the same billionaires who fund Trump. So it’s no wonder he’s delving into culture wars to prevent Mamdani from winning the class war against billionaires.

Like a broken record, Cuomo first wants Mamdani to condemn a phrase he never said, i.e. “globalize the intifada.” Mamdani has addressed this statement numerous times, but the point is that no matter how many times he addresses it, Cuomo will repeat it because he knows it creates fear, and that’s what fuels Cuomo’s campaign.

Next, Cuomo attacked Mamdani for taking a photo with an anti-LGBTQ politician from Uganda. Again, Mamdani had previously denounced that politician and expressed his regret in taking the photo out of ignorance as to who she was. But not only is that not enough for Cuomo, his attack is actually even more sinister. Cuomo doesn’t actually care about protecting the humanity of LGBTQ people. Because, as Mamdani pointed out in response, of the two candidates, it is only Zohran Mamdani who has an actual platform to combat anti-LGBTQ hate.

Cuomo has nothing on his platform, at all. He’s literally using Queer people as a political football to attack Mamdani. This is honestly unsurprising as The Guardian reports that a young Andrew Cuomo allegedly came up with the slogan for his father Mario Cuomo’s campaign against Ed Koch, “Vote for Cuomo, not the homo.”

Third, and delving into a new line of sinister anti-Muslim attacks, Cuomo attacked Zohran Mamdani for wanting to de-criminalize prostitution by saying he’s “upsetting the Sunni Muslims.” Cuomo said this likely knowing Zohran is a Shia Muslim—which represents a minority sect in Islam, and one that often faces discrimination and persecution from some in the Sunni majority.

Cuomo’s brazen attempt to pit American Muslims against each other—another culture war—should sound the alarm. Whatever you think of decriminalizing prostitution, it is beyond absurd that Cuomo is trying to make this a sectarian issue between Sunnis and Shias. It is interesting how much Cuomo suddenly seems to know about Islam, given he never so much as stepped foot in a mosque until after he lost an election to a Muslim American candidate.

Finally, Cuomo attempted to attack Mamdani on antisemitism—while tying it to Israel’s genocide of Palestinians. Once again, Cuomo conflates Jews with Israel, and falsely insinuates criticism of Israel is itself antisemitism. Moreover, Cuomo erases Jewish New Yorkers altogether, ignoring that a plurality of Jewish voters voted for Mamdani. Cuomo ignores Mamdani’s stated commitment and policy to increase funding by 800% to combat antisemitic hate crimes. Meanwhile, Cuomo is a volunteer attorney for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu as he’s being charged with literal war crimes and genocide. Apparently, genocide of Palestinians is acceptable to Cuomo.

Curtis Sliwa piled on by accusing Mamdani of wanting to “wage global Jihad,” another phrase Zohran Mamdani has never said. Sliwa then used this false statement to assert that his own sons felt fear under a potential Mamdani mayorship. Mamdani clarified that this is a falsely attributed statement to him, but moreover, that despite Sliwa’s attacks, he would make it a priority to be a mayor that keeps Sliwa’s sons safe as well. But again, understand that Cuomo and Sliwa don’t repeat these malicious and Islamophobic attacks because they’re true, they repeat them because they stick.

And they stick far beyond demonizing only Zohran Mamdani. Here’s a snapshot of the hate I received after calling out Cuomo and Sliwa’s Islamophobic bigotry. Content warning, racist and dehumanizing language ahead.

Unfortunately, this is what countless American Muslims experience on the daily due to the demonizations of people like Cuomo and Sliwa. And then of course there’s the very public continued hateful rhetoric from Internet celebrities demonizing American Muslims for clout. I am old enough to remember when Larry Elder had a TV Show called “Moral Court.” A reality show where he would call on people to uphold morality and ethics. Now he’s jumped head first into anti-Muslim hate and demonization.

The Lesson Zohran Mamdani Exemplifies

Thus, the response Zohran Mamdani exemplified at the debate, and indeed what he’s exemplified throughout his career and during this campaign, is a response every person in the United States should take note of.

His response sheds light on how to fix our broken politics.

In the Qur’an Chapter 5, Verse 9, God commands: “Let not a people’s enmity cause you to act other than with justice. Be always just; that is closer to righteousness.”

I cite this verse as a message to politicians planning to bring a Muslim’s faith into a debate about winning a secular office. If you’re going to bring up religion, start and finish by citing this verse.

Because this is the standard Zohran Mamdani exemplified in his response to Cuomo and Sliwa’s hate, and this is the standard how we can fix America’s broken politics. When Cuomo weaponized women’s rights to smear him, Mamdani responded by condemning Cuomo’s own record of sexual abuse and instead standing firmly for women’s safety and dignity. When challenged on antisemitism, Mamdani didn’t deflect—he leaned into the importance of putting real action behind combating antisemitism, as he is doing so by increasing funding 800% to combat such hate. And when Sliwa accused him of “waging jihad” and expressed fear for his own sons’ safety, Mamdani calmly corrected the record, then extended compassion—saying that even as Sliwa described the abuse his own sons faced, Mamdani would also be a mayor for them.

In short, Mamdani didn’t take the hateful bait. Instead, he factually called out injustice, furthermore stuck to justice in response, and leaned into why his message matters, a message of affordability and humanity. Cuomo and Sliwa are running against Mamdani. Mamdani is running for New Yorkers.

That distinction is Islam in action. The prophetic call to justice, compassion, and truth—even in the face of enmity. If people want to talk about Zohran Mamdani’s faith, then let’s talk about what it really teaches: the unbreakable commitment to justice above all else. That is what America needs most right now—not fearmongering or division, not hate or demonization, not left vs right, but moral courage rooted in fairness, empathy, integrity, and justice for every person in this country without exception.

Conclusion

Corporate media refuses to cover this—not because they can’t see it, but because they benefit from the hate that divides us. Islamophobia, antisemitism, and anti-LGBTQ hate remain acceptable currency in establishment politics because they keep us fighting against each other instead of fighting for each other.

Thus, we cannot let this injustice stand. We cannot let the billionaire class or their media mouthpieces decide who deserves humanity and who does not. Zohran Mamdani’s courage reminds us what true leadership looks like—one rooted in principle, not propaganda; in solidarity, not scapegoating.

I’ll keep speaking up because silence in the face of injustice is complicity. But I need your help to do it. Stand with me. Subscribe to Let’s Address This so I can keep exposing the hate corporate media won’t, confront the establishment politicians who enable it, and provide a fact based narrative to build bridges of humanity and dialogue. Together, we can reject the politics of fear and build a politics of justice. That struggle against injustice is what the word Jihad actually means. That struggle for your neighbor’s safety, dignity, and security is the true Jihad we all should be proud to wage. Nothing frightens the powerful more than our unity—and nothing is more American, or more righteous, than standing up for each other.