NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — As hate crimes against Jewish New Yorkers spike and political tensions amid the Israel-Hamas war rise, Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday announced the establishment of a new office that will work to fight antisemitism in NYC.
The first task of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism will be to establish an interagency taskforce, which Adams said will be dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all forms and ensure that city-funded entities and agencies do not permit hate.
The taskforce will monitor court cases and outcomes at all levels of the justice system, liaise with the NYC Law Department on appropriate cases to bring or join and advise on executive orders and legislation that address antisemitism.
Moshe Davis, the Jewish liaison for the Office of Community Affairs who previously served as a rabbinic leader at the Manhattan Jewish Experience and founded New York Jews in Politics, will lead the new unit.
“This office will be a sledgehammer, deliberate, coordinated and unapologetic,” Davis said.
According to the NYPD, 54% of all hate crimes in NYC last year targeted the Jewish community, and the number jumped to 62% in the first quarter of 2025. Jewish New Yorkers make up 10% of the overall population, the world’s largest Jewish community outside of Israel.
“We will never tolerate antisemitism in any way, shape or form,” First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro said. “It’s not just about crimes. It’s about culture.”
Adams’ hope is that the new office will be able to root out antisemitism in a variety of city spaces.
“The rivers of information that we saw put out in some of our school systems was planned out on our college campuses with organizations that are receiving taxpayers’ dollars that are promoting antisemitism,” he said.
The mayor provided an example of the antisemitism he referenced, stating: “If you’re saying eradicate Israel, destroy Israel, I mean, who lives in Israel?”
Activism on college campuses supporting the Palestinian cause since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war has raised concern among federal and city governments regarding antisemitism on college campuses. No institution has been under as much scrutiny as Columbia University, which had $400 million in federal grants and contracts pulled by the Trump administration in March. Federal officials cited the school’s inadequate response to complaints of antisemitism by Jewish students as the reason for the funding loss.
Earlier this month students took over Butler Library at Columbia in a pro-Palestinian rally, resulting in the arrest of at least 80 people and suspension of 65 students.
“To our Jewish New Yorkers, especially the students at Columbia who feel threatened or unsafe attending class because of these events: know that your mayor stands with you and will always work to keep you safe,” the mayor said in a statement during the demonstration.
Some Jewish-led organizations that advocate for Palestinian rights believe that criticism of the state of Israel should not be understood as antisemitic—like Jewish Voice for Peace, which argues that anti-Zionism is often conflated with antisemitism. The group has been highly critical of Israel’s actions in Gaza both before and after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on southern Israel.
“Opposition to the political movement of Zionism and/or the policies of the state of Israel is no different from criticism of any other political ideology or policies of any other nation state,” the organization said in a statement in 2023.
Jewish advocacy groups on the other end of the political spectrum, like Zioness, were among support for Adams’ taskforce and backed his association between antisemitism and anti-Zionism.
“Zioness has long been sounding the alarm on the unprecedented rise in antisemitism, especially anti-Zionism, across New York City,” Zioness CEO Amanda Berman said. “This dangerous and destabilizing force endangers Jews, drives wedges between communities, and erodes trust in our political, academic and cultural institutions, and must be fought consistently and with moral clarity.”
Adams said that his new office will prioritize identifying city-funded organizations that may be pushing antisemitic messaging and aim to prevent free speech from crossing into hate speech.
“This is a country where free speech exists. We may not like the speech that's said, but this is the country we’re in,” Adams said. “But government cannot be the supporter and feeder of hate.”