In the fall of 2008, Colin Powell, former Secretary of State under George W. Bush, left the Republican Party and supported Democratic candidate for President Barack Obama. It was a brutal summer of electoral warfare. Rumors circulated that Obama was a Muslim, becoming an important aspect of media coverage of his campaign. The group, working with his opponent John McCain, called people in swing states, questioned Obama's religious background and asked how they would vote if they knew the Democrat was supported by Hamas. A McCain spokesman echoed those calls, but when a constituent later told a town hall that she couldn't trust Obama, who was “an Arab,” McCain shook his head. “No, ma'am,” he said. Obama was a “decent family man.” The implication that an “Arab” could not possess these qualities was poisonous enough, but it was Powell who took on the unspoken. He admitted on NBC's “Meet the Press” that Obama “is not a Muslim. He's a Christian. He's always been a Christian.” However, Powell continued: What if Obama were Muslim? “What's wrong with being a Muslim in this country?”
Seventeen years later, the issue became central to the race for mayor of New York, in which Zogran MamdaniThe thirty-four-year-old democratic socialist and Muslim has been a confident leader since winning the election. Democratic primaries last summer. Mamdani's candidacy has faced numerous legitimate attacks, citing his inexperience and questions about how he will deliver on his promises to make the city more accessible. In recent weeks, however, many of the criticisms have taken on a specifically anti-Muslim slant. Ellie Cohanim, former deputy special envoy to combat anti-Semitism in the first Trump administration, posted a photo of the burning Twin Towers on September 11, 2001 and wrote: “Never forget… Vote for Andrew Cuomo and save our city”; New York Mail published headlines linking Mamdani to terrorism, such as: “WEAPONS OF DESTRUCTION Hamas.Cuomo himself, a former New York governor who is running against Mamdani as an independent, recently made remarks about his opponent that have attracted widespread attention. In an interview with conservative radio host Sid Rosenberg, Cuomo asked if anyone could “imagine Mamdani in that seat” if there was another 9/11. When Rosenberg responded, “He would applaud,” Cuomo chuckled and added, “That's another problem.”
This comment echoes a similar statement made during another campaign that was observed. In November 2015 Donald Trumpwho was then running for president, claimed to have seen “thousands” of Muslims in New Jersey celebrating 9/11. A month later, he called for a plan to ban Muslims from entering the country to ensure its safety. After he took office in January 2017, the policy went into effect and hundreds of New Yorkers descended on JFK Airport to protest. In a show of solidarity, Governor Cuomo said, “As a New Yorker, I am a Muslim.” It was a politically useful feeling back then.
Trump's story was a lie, but it gave voice to long-standing suspicions of so-called dual loyalties. Since 9/11, authorities have rounded up Muslim men across the country and detained them without charge—in some cases for years—or deported them for minor visa violations. To avoid such a fate, many Muslim families fled the United States, leaving behind neighbors and friends. The New York Police Department created a demographic unit whose undercover officers and informants combed Muslim neighborhoods and hid in bookstores, mosques and restaurants in search of terrorist threats, leaving communities fearful that they were always being watched. The program continued for many years and, after being challenged in court, was eventually disbanded.
