Wednesday Mezze: An American Intifada: Zohran Mamdani / Good Muslim, Bad Muslim + "... New York Jews"
Mezze - المزة - a wide selection of small dishes served as appetizers, including such delicacies as hummus, cheese, eggplant, brains, stuffed grape leaves, calamari, and much more
Good Afternoon Family, Friends, and Colleagues,
I love and support the idea of transformative political mobilizations led by young people. I remember being young once: in 1968 I was part of Senator Eugene “Clean for Gene” McCarthy’s anti-war campaign when he was running for the Democratic nomination for president
It was also the year that, among others, MLK and Bobby were assassinated.
That year changed me. It should have changed the nation.
Instead, the party nominated Hubert Humphrey.
America is still paying for that choice.
Salamaat,
Robert
NB There is a link to watch Mississippi Masala down below my column: I hope it works for everyone.
An American Intifada:* Zohran Mamdani / Good Muslim, Bad Muslim
It's a new day in America.
Today, I welcome the new American Intifada,* an uprising challenging privilege, oligarchy, and entrenched political interests that is sweeping across New York City.
An uprising challenging the politics of fear and division.
A time of victory for, as Zohran Mamdani says, ... the Bangladeshi auntie.
I remember when, in 2001 - in the aftermath of 9/11 - as we Muslims seemed to be suddenly appearing everywhere - like Harriet Beecher Stowe's Topsy - from sea to shining sea there was consternation.
Who are these people, our neighbors asked?
In the greater NY / NJ region thousands were profiled and/or detained - many simply for being Muslim or for having skin the color of Jesus's skin.
Some of us got phone calls - many of us were afraid.
To many Americans - I remember that time well as I lived and was profiled through it - the fact that Muslims actually had livelihoods and made their homes in the land of the free and home of the brave was a surprise.
Many had grow'd - Topsy-like -in America for generations.
It was perhaps even more of a surprise when Americans learned that many of those previously unseen Muslims were from families who had been here for over 400 years; others - seeking refuge or opportunity - had come to America to be sheltered by George Washington's promise that [all] shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig-tree and there shall be none to make him afraid.
In 2001, Muslims in America were perceived by many as threats, and to many of their fellow citizens they remained the Other, under suspicion, targets throughout the so-called War on Terror, through Guantanamo and "enhanced interrogations," though the old Muslim Ban - through today's new Muslim Ban.
Many had grow'd in America for generations; some, like Zohran Kwame Mamdani, grow'd almost yesterday.
In this America, despite the fact that millions of the Other have grow'd like Topsy, Muslims are still too often viewed through an oft-polished racist prism most recently manifest in unspeakably ignorant and cruel responses to Zohran Mamdani's primary victory, including from the president a threat to deport him.
A prism polished to reflect the prejudice that emerges when human beings are considered the Other.
How dare Zohran Mamdani believe - racists and critics ask - that Muslims and their ilk can share in the love and leadership of this great nation?
How dare marginalized and seemingly-disenfranchised young New Yorkers believe that they should have a voice in how they are governed; to believe that they may freely choose between re-affirming the politics and prejudices of tired old Democrat retreads like Andrew Cuomo, Eric Adams, Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, Kirsten Gillibrand, Bill Clinton, and others; or dare to affirm the legitimacy of Zohran Mamdani, a candidate who tells them he shares with MLK a belief that: Call it democracy or call it democratic socialism. There has to be a better distribution of wealth for all of God’s children in this country.
~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~
... Mamdani ... Mamdani ... Mamdani
Recently, as national attention focused on the New York City primary I wondered why the name of the democratic socialist candidate - Zohran Mamdani - seemed so familiar to me.
... Mamdani ... Mamdani ... Mamdani
Distracted by personal matters, focused on the continuing - and widely ignored - genocide in Gaza; and angry at the West's acceptance of Israel's lies framing its conflict with Iran as existential one, I didn't pursue those thoughts for a while.
Last Tuesday - NYC's Primary Day - the dime dropped.
I remembered that Mahmood Mamdani is not just the name of Zohran's father but that he is the author - among many works - of the seminal and important anti-colonial work, Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror; a book that has occupied a space on my bookshelves since 2004. His father - who accompanied American students who made bus trips (organized by SNCC) to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965 - is a professor of government and a professor of anthropology, political science and African studies at Columbia University.
I note, too, that a movie I love - Mississippi Masala, about an interracial romance between an African American and Indian American (starring Denzel Washington) - was directed by Zohran's mother, Mira Nair, an award-winning movie maker.
Over the past week we have all read much commentary about Zohran Mamdani - mostly a boring pastiche of ignorant racist-speak - much of which seems to be coming from Democrats willing to flaunt their Islamophobia and ignorance in public.
I was insulted by their commentary, but not surprised. I'm not going to honor their hate by quoting them. There's a link for a sample below if you're inclined to read them.
To my mind the rejectionists - especially institutional Democrats - are missing the biggest part of this story: that in the largest city in the United States of America - in one of the most racially, ethnically, economically, and culturally diverse cities in this nation - a young, naturalized immigrant - a populist - born in Uganda, raised in South Africa and the United States, embraced in an environment of intellect and creativity, educated at the Bank Street School and the Bronx High School of Science before attending Bowdoin College in Maine where he co-founded the school's chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, is demanding that the unseen and unheard be listened to in our Public Square.
Zohran’s story is an impressive American story, occurring today in a nation where uprisings and rebellions against injustice are not uncommon.
A place where intifadas - like the American Revolution - like the Civil Rights Movement - happen.
An American story.
What's to hate? That's all great DNA.
A young naturalized American comfortable in his own skin and unapologetic about his origins, faith, concerns, and politics; a politician willing to engage voters about his beliefs.
An American who says: I promise you will not always agree with me, but I will never hide from you. If you are hurting, I will try to heal. If you feel misunderstood, I will strive to understand. Your concerns will always be mine.
To his opposition, to Islamophobes and, sadly, to most political commentators - Mamdani is simply an uppity Queens assemblyman - a naturalized 33-year-old-African-American democratic socialist Muslim who ran an unrealistic campaign relentlessly focused on making the city more affordable for working and middle-class people.
They miss the point.
I'm not here to cheerlead for Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral candidacy.
What we are witnessing is a bigger deal than that.
I'm here to suggest that we are bearing witness to a transformative American story, a tale where an enlightened and motivated citizenry is endorsing an uprising; endorsing a platform that speaks to directly to them with the hope that they could perhaps, one day, have life in a city ... where they can do more than just struggle.
They voted for an American Infifada - they voted for the decolonization of the American experiment; they voted for it because they believe that freedom imposes moral and ethical obligations on the fortunate to ease the burden of the vulnerable because no one is truly free till all are free.
Because they believe that such freedom extends - as it did to Algeria, to India, to South Africa - and today to New York City - also to Palestine.
Because they believe, as Nelson Mandela said: We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.
While support for Palestinian freedom was not central to his campaign, Mamdani didn't carve out exceptions for PEPS - Progressives Except for Palestine. He made no exception for NYC so-called progressives whose primary focus for decades has been to both maintain unconditional American support for Israel and to smear anyone as antisemitic who challenges that support.
We are witnessing a new American Intifada - smart, peaceful, diverse, inclusive, creative.
In summation, I don't care whether you vote for Mamdani or not: what I care is that you recognize the legitimacy of the uprising and that you become attentive to those newly-empowered voices assembled in our Public Square who are speaking out for equity and justice.
They are telling us it is either all peoples or no peoples.
There are millions of New Yorkers who have strong feelings about what happens overseas, Mamdani says. Yes, I am one of them, and while I will not abandon my beliefs or my commitments grounded in the demand for equality, for humanity, you have my word to reach further, to understand the perspectives of those with whom I disagree and wrestle deeply with those disagreements.
That’s the sort of intifada should be globalized.
All peoples.
* Intifada is an Arabic word meaning "uprising" or "rebellion." Intifada" comes from the Arabic verb nafaDa, which means "to shake the dust off something." It can mean “to shake off,” “to shed,” “to be rid of something.”
In 1952 it was used to describe a series of protests in Iraq aimed at forcing the king to abdicate. Protests in Egypt in 2011 were sometimes called the "Egyptian Intifada" or "Camel Intifada."
Clearly it can be interpreted differently depending on context and an individual's perspective. Some see it as a term associated with violence and terrorism, while others argue that it signifies a struggle for social and economic justice, freedom, and self-determination - which can encompass both violent and non-violent action - and not exclusively within Palestinian or Arab contexts. For some other perspective, “War” used in context of WWII or “War on Terror” clearly means something different than “War on Poverty.”
My Fellow New York Jews and I Know Zohran Mamdani Does Not Threaten Us
Journalist Spencer Ackerman posted a column today. I have excerpted one paragraph. His column, in its entirety, requires a subscription to access:
Make no mistake: the unaffordability of New York fueled Mamdani's victory, not anything to do with Israel, no matter how many oligarchs and the politicians they fund seek to obscure the class interests at stake. But what Schneier, Lipstadt, Goldman, Betar, and the rest cannot face as they watch the "avalanche" advance is that Israel deserves the outrage it is reaping. Its genocide, its pogroms to entrench apartheid, and its regional aggression is the cause of the world's opprobrium, not some eternal antisemitic hatred. If Israel wants to transform its reception, it must dismantle its operations and institutions that oppress Palestinians. This is and has always been the only path to genuine, enduring Jewish safety in Israel/Palestine. If American Zionists want their college-aged children not to hear Israel described with discomfiting accuracy and passion, then they must pressure Israel to stop its genocide, not cheer as the cops advance on their classmates.
https://zeteo.com/p/my-fellow-new-york-jews-and-i-know
A Reflection from the Guardian that I appreciate:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jul/01/democrats-zohran-mamdani
Some hate speech from a US Senator:
https://truthout.org/articles/democratic-senator-gillibrand-goes-on-islamophobic-rant-against-mamdani/
Try watching Mississippi Masala here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4s47Kd5RIs
Keep your keffiyeh close, your loved ones closer.
Salamaat,
Robert
theother.azzi@gmail.com