New York City's seasoned law enforcement officials are voicing grave apprehensions about Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.
They caution that his previous anti-police rhetoric, coupled with his current policy proposals, could trigger a mass resignation of officers and a significant downturn in public safety.
Mamdani, a socialist candidate, recently emerged victorious from the Democratic primary. This places him in a robust position against independent incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and Republican contender Curtis Sliwa in the forthcoming general election. However, the prospect of a Mamdani-led New York City is not universally welcomed.
Scott Munro, president of the NYPD Detectives Endowment Association, expressed his fears to the New York Post, stating, The city would be totally unsafe for people who live here. I go to bed and worry about the phone ringing. Im worried about my members getting killed. I dont want to plan any funerals. He further warned, If you put a guy like him in there, our people are going to get hurt, and nobodys going to want the job. Its going to put recruitment back five more steps.
As reported by The Post Millennial, top-ranking NYPD officials are bracing for a potential mass departure of officers if Mamdani clinches the mayoral race. An anonymous police source disclosed to the outlet, Ive had guys call me and say If he wins, Im quitting. Its just weird that New York City would vote for him. I know hes not here for the police.
A veteran officer nearing retirement after almost twenty years of service expressed his exasperation with the city's escalating antagonism towards the police. He predicted that under Mamdani's leadership, the situation would deteriorate further.
"This guy thinks the entire NYPD is racist, the officer said. I think right now the department is more diverse than it ever was before. I dont think this guy has even stepped foot in a precinct. Hes completely clueless to what the police department is today. Hes just going off a narrative that if you hate cops youre going to get elected.
Mamdani's track record includes a series of provocative comments about law enforcement. In 2020, he tweeted: "We dont need an investigation to know that the NYPD is racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety. What we need is to #DefundTheNYPD NO to fake cuts defund the police." He also asserted that queer liberation means defund the police.
More recently, during his mayoral campaign, he has tried to temper his stance, acknowledging that police have a critical role to play.
Nevertheless, many of his current proposals continue to ignite concern among law enforcement and public safety advocates. Mamdani has endorsed a range of controversial policies, including establishing a new Department of Community Safety independent of the NYPD, terminating cooperation with ICE, decriminalizing drug possession, legalizing sex work, and setting up supervised injection sites. He does not back increasing police hiring, a policy supported by most other mayoral candidates.
Curtis Sliwa, GOP nominee and founder of the Guardian Angels, criticized Mamdani's policing perspective, saying, He has a weird notion of how policing is, as if it should be people like Mahatma Gandhi walking around, you know, functioning as a social worker. That does not work.
A longtime NYPD detective also lambasted Mamdani as a "hypocrite" for accepting a full-time police security detail during his campaign despite his anti-police platform. You have police protecting you, but you dont want to protect the people of New York City? the detective questioned. This contradiction further underscores the concerns raised by law enforcement officials about Mamdani's suitability for the mayoral role.
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