What you should know
- Office Was Created in May 2025 to Address Unprecedented Rise in Antisemitism and Anti-Jewish Hate, Ensure Jewish New Yorkers Feel Safe
- Builds on Adams Administration’s Work to Support Jewish New Yorkers, Combat Hate and Discrimination in All Its Forms
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism Executive Director Moshe Davis today released the first annual report from the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism. The report documents the policy framework, operational structures, and legislative strategy taken up by the nation’s first municipal Office to Combat Antisemitism since its founding in May 2025. Chapters include the historical context of antisemitism in New York City, adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition to identify modern antisemitism, operations of the interagency task force spanning over 35 agencies, and detailed legal and policy analysis of the executive orders and legislative proposals. The report also offers a roadmap for the future through legislative priorities, strong public messaging, citywide training initiatives, and enhanced enforcement mechanisms.
“After the attacks of October 7, 2023, I wasn’t afraid to say what so many New Yorkers were feeling: We were not alright. That was the truth and a call to action,” said Mayor Adams. “Confronting antisemitism has been a priority for our administration. New York City is home to the largest Jewish community outside of Israel — a point of pride and responsibility. But, when an age-old hatred rises, we must name it, confront it, and protect our neighbors, because public safety and civil rights go hand-in-hand. That is why we established the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism — the first of its kind in a major American city. In a few short months, we delivered four executive orders, built an interagency task force dedicated to coordinating responses, and adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, among other initiatives, but we know there is still more work to be done. I am proud of this report, which lays a framework for addressing this pervasive problem, and I thank Executive Director Moshe Davis and First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro for their steadfast commitment to ensuring all New Yorkers feel safe and respected in New York City.”
“We find ourselves at a crossroad in this city with antisemitism raging,” said First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro. “Such hate cannot go unchecked here, home to the largest Jewish population of any city in the world. That is why this administration has met the moment and is addressing antisemitism in a comprehensive way, as this timely report details. And our city government must continue to speak out and stand up against antisemitism.”
“We cannot control world events or eradicate centuries-old hatred, but we can do what government does best: create policy, enforce the law, educate, and speak with moral clarity,” said Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism Executive Director Davis. “In less than eight months, we established the first office of its kind in a major American city and built lasting tools to combat antisemitism. This report is both a record of what we accomplished and a blueprint for what municipal government ought to do.”
The Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism Report demonstrates that cities can institutionalize the fight against hate using existing resources through strategic coordination, clear definitions, enforcement mechanisms, and moral clarity in public messaging. What New York City accomplished provides other municipalities with detailed implementation guidance, legal frameworks, and operational examples designed for immediate adaptation and replication. The report also includes the full text of all executive orders, mayoral speeches, and draft legislation related to Mayor Adams’ efforts to combat antisemitism in appendices.
Today’s announcement builds on Mayor Adams’ commitment to rooting out antisemitism across the city, the nation, and the globe. In May 2025, Mayor Adams established the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, a first-of-its-kind office across the nation dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all forms and keeping New Yorkers safe. Flanked by dozens of leading Jewish advocates, Mayor Adams announced this new effort to establish an inter-agency taskforce dedicated to fighting antisemitism in all its forms, liaise with the New York City Law Department on appropriate cases to bring or join, advise on executive orders to issue and legislation to propose to address antisemitism, and work across agencies to ensure New Yorkers feel protected against antisemitism and to address incidents of antisemitism, among taking other actions. The office has, and continues to, also work to combat antisemitism at city-funded entities and city agencies.
Later that month, Mayor Adams launched the New York City–Israel Economic Council, a first-of-its-kind initiative, bringing together city leaders, business executives, and innovators to deepen economic cooperation between New York City and Israel. The council advances shared priorities in technology, public safety, climate resilience, infrastructure, and life sciences — ensuring that New York continues to benefit from Israel’s world-leading innovation ecosystem.
In June 2025, Mayor Adams signed a historic executive order to recognize the IHRA working definition of antisemitism, which identifies demonizing Israel and holding it to double standards as forms of contemporary antisemitism; these are exactly the core tactics of the boycott, divestment, and sanction (BDS) movement.
Recently, Mayor Adams signed two executive orders that will ensure city agencies continue to make sound financial decisions that protect taxpayer dollars and that protect New Yorkers’ right to practice their religion at houses of worship without harassment, while still protecting freedom of speech and peaceful assembly. Executive Order No. 60 prohibits mayoral agency heads, agency chief contracting officers, and any other mayoral appointees with discretion over contracting from engaging in procurement practices that discriminate against the State of Israel, Israeli citizens, or those associated with Israel. Executive Order No. 61 directs the commissioner of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) to evaluate potential changes to the NYPD patrol guide to evaluate proposals for regulating protest activity occurring close to houses of worship.
“A famous quotation in the movie The King’s Speech is when King George VI says, ‘I have a voice.’ Thankfully, Mayor Eric Adams has been a courageous voice in combatting the scourge of antisemitism in our city,” said Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis. “While some were silent, he was not afraid to shout and stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. He would remind us that antisemitism is anti-Christianity, anti-Islam, and anti–all faiths. We will always be grateful.”
“We are grateful to Mayor Adams, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, and Executive Director Moshe Davis for their unwavering advocacy and support for Jewish New Yorkers at a moment when the community urgently needed government to act,” said Hindy Poupko, senior vice president, UJA Federation of New York. “The recent antisemitic attack at Bondi Beach underscores the ongoing need for efforts like those undertaken by MOCA, including strengthened enforcement tools and training, streamlined security infrastructure for synagogues and Jewish institutions, and citywide educational initiatives - all helping to ensure that Jewish New Yorkers feel safe and supported.”
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