Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani: Good morning. It is an honor to start the day alongside so many servicemembers as we kick off Fleet Week. I want to begin by thanking Commissioner Yesenia Mata for her leadership in ensuring our veterans are better able to lead lives of dignity in New York City. I also want to thank the VFW Post 150 Members and Post Commander Ryan Graham for their leadership and commitment to our nation.
Thank you to both the active and retired members of the Coast Guard, Navy and Marine Corps.
Some of you are just beginning your time in active duty. Others look back on decades of service with pride. Wherever you are in your career, you are bound by a rare courage — the courage of having answered the call to serve. And I want to express my deep gratitude to the Gold Star families here and all those who love someone who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Yesterday, we marked 250 years as a nation — 250 years of an audacious experiment in self-governance, one that our forefathers knew could not be set into motion then left to run its course. Embedded in the Declaration of Independence is the notion that our founding ideals are forever a work in progress, that each generation of Americans holds a responsibility to continue the work of fulfilling them.
As members of the armed forces, you all have embarked upon that work with a devotion few can match. You have sacrificed time with family and friends and the comforts of home because you believe not only in the promise of America, but in the work required to deliver it.
Two days ago, I sat at George Washington’s desk to address the people of New York for our country’s 250th birthday.
Today, I cannot help but think of the words of George Washington shared on what this nation owes those who sacrificed on our behalf's. “The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.”
I stand before you immensely humbled to serve as the mayor of New York City — to lead a city from which so many of our citizens sign up to serve, to honor that responsibility to their fellow Americans. And I know that as your mayor, I have a deep responsibility in return — to ensure the more than 135,000 veterans here in New York City, their families and our Gold Star Families receive the support they need to live with dignity.
As we celebrate this American anniversary, let us also recommit to the work of America —250 years after our founding, America is still here, ever striving to live up to our ideals. And we are still striving — still living out this grand experiment in democracy — thanks to the sacrifices, the devotion and the courage of service members like you. Thank you and have a wonderful Fleet Week.
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