Staff Reports
New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has stirred up outrage by publicly coaching residents on how to dodge federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, just days after a high-profile ICE raid in Chinatown rattled local communities. Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist who clinched the Democratic nomination for mayor in a stunning upset, took to social media to urge New Yorkers to “know your rights” when facing ICE, insisting agents can’t enter homes, schools, or workplaces without a judicial warrant. This guidance arrives amid backlash from immigrant advocates over the raid, which targeted individuals in the bustling neighborhood, but critics see it as a blatant invitation to obstruct federal law enforcement.
Mamdani’s rhetoric doesn’t stop at legal reminders—it veers into territory that smells like active resistance to federal authority. By framing ICE encounters as adversarial battles where everyday New Yorkers should prepare defensive tactics, he’s essentially greenlighting confrontation with officers just doing their jobs to enforce immigration laws. This isn’t education; it’s encouragement to flout the rule of law, prioritizing ideology over order in a city already strained by sanctuary policies that tie law enforcement’s hands.
City Councilman Joe Borelli didn’t mince words, blasting Mamdani’s stance as the inevitable fallout from voters’ flirtation with radical leftism. “This is what you get with sanctuary city madness,” Borelli declared, warning that shielding illegal immigrants—even those with rap sheets—emboldens criminals and endangers everyone else. He’s spot on: New York harbors thousands of felony offenders, including violent thugs accused of attempted murder and sexual assault, many shielded from deportation under these misguided protections that put American citizens last.
The numbers paint a grim picture of sanctuary folly. State data reveals nearly 7,000 felony-level criminals roaming free, a direct consequence of policies that hamstring ICE and local cops from removing threats. Mamdani’s tips risk escalating dangers for families, blurring lines between hardworking legal immigrants and lawbreakers who game the system, all while families in mixed-status households live in fear—not of ICE, but of the unchecked crime spilling into their streets.
This episode exposes the bankruptcy of open-borders activism masquerading as compassion. Mamdani’s leadership test isn’t about balancing empathy; it’s about whether he’ll put New Yorkers’ safety first or continue down the socialist path that invites chaos. With crime stats already linking illegal immigration to spikes in arrests, his approach threatens to turn the Big Apple into a no-go zone for law-abiding folks who just want secure neighborhoods.
