New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdanis decision to skip Manhattans Columbus Day Parade drew a mix of relief and resentment from attendees who see his record as openly hostile to Italian-American heritage.
The New York Times reported that City Halls media office declined to explain why Mamdani was absent from the nations largest celebration of Italian-American culture, a conspicuous no-show that many interpreted as deliberate. According to Western Journal, the mayors silence fit a familiar pattern for a progressive politician who has repeatedly signaled disdain for the holiday and its namesake.
In 2020, Mamdani infamously posted a photo of himself giving a statue of Christopher Columbus in Queens the finger on social media and captioned it, Take it down. Over the weekend, he released a video on social media marking Italian Heritage Month, but conspicuously omitted any reference to Columbus, the historical figure at the center of the days festivities.
Fox News reported that New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman, and New York Attorney General Letitia James all attended the 82nd annual Columbus Day parade, underscoring how politically mainstream the event remains despite left-wing efforts to discredit it. Their presence contrasted sharply with Mamdanis absence, which critics saw as another example of progressive politicians snubbing traditional American and ethnic celebrations that do not fit their ideological narrative.
Blakeman told the New York Post regarding Mamdanis absence, I think thats an affront to Italian Americans, adding, The fact is that he is a very divisive guy. Hes got people at each others throats. As an elected official, youre supposed to make people happy, bring them together. His remarks reflected a broader conservative concern that identity politics and radical activism are eroding the shared civic rituals that once united New Yorkers across ethnic and political lines.
Curtis Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels and last years Republican mayoral candidate, was even more blunt in his assessment. We have a word for that in the streets. Its disgrazia, he said, using the Italian term for disgrace to describe a mayor who refuses to stand with a community he has previously mocked.
Some parade-goers, however, said they were relieved not to see Mamdani at all, suggesting his presence would have been a provocation rather than a gesture of respect. New York resident Anne Marie told the Post, Its better that hes not here, explaining, It probably would have been controversial. Nobody wants to look at his face.
Similarly, attendee Camile Staffe framed the day as a celebration of a community that feels increasingly under siege by progressive attempts to rewrite history. Im happy. Its about the Italians. Italy doesnt get enough credit, but we contribute to America They try to make it about indigenous people. Its not fair, she said, proudly pointing out, My grandfather helped build the Empire State Building.
Michael Crispi, head of the Italian American Civil Rights League, argued that the real mistake was inviting Mamdani at all, given his record. He told The New York Times that the mayor should not have been invited in the first place, adding, He has contempt for Italian Americans, and, Youre begging for approval of this guy who should be apologizing to us over his 2020 Columbus statue picture.
Joann Ariola, a member of the New York City Council, voiced a similar sentiment before the parade even began. He should sit this one out, she said, effectively calling for the mayor to remove himself from an event honoring a community he has publicly insulted.
In contrast to Mamdanis posture, President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker, has consistently embraced Columbus Day and the Western heritage it represents. In his presidential proclamation, Trump said that the Italian explorer and his crew unleashed a bold new age of discovery that expanded the horizons of knowledge, carried the splendors of the Western world across an ocean, and set in motion the forces that would culminate in the miracle of July 4, 1776.
Trump also noted that he had a statue of Columbus installed on the White House grounds, a replica of one that was torn down and thrown into Baltimore Harbor on July 4, 2020. That act of restoration stood in stark contrast to the lefts campaign of monument destruction, signaling a defense of Western civilization and the immigrant communitieslike Italian Americanswho helped build the United States.
For many New Yorkers at the parade, the divide between Trumps unapologetic defense of Columbus and Mamdanis conspicuous absence captured a broader cultural and political split. At a time when progressive officials seem more eager to appease radical activists than to honor the traditions of hard-working immigrant families, Italian Americans and their allies are making it clear they will not quietly surrender their history, their heroes, or their place in the American story.
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