Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, rolled out an extensive list of more than 400 new transition team appointees on Monday, saying the picks would help “recruit top talent and develop smart policy” on such issues as housing, community safety and economic development.

Despite the wide diversity of his choices, some of the appointees have raised concerns among Jewish leaders who remain skeptical of the mayor-elect and his commitment to fighting antisemitism, especially in moments where anti-Israel sentiment can cross a line into overt bigotry against Jews.

Among the most controversial sources of criticism was Mamdani’s appointment of Tamika Mallory, a former Women’s March leader who stepped down from its board amid allegations of antisemitism, to a newly established community safety committee.

Mallory, who rose to prominence as a leading organizer of the Women’s March after President Donald Trump was first elected, resigned from her role as a co-chair of the organization after facing accusations of having made virulently antisemitic remarks, including a widely discredited claim that Jewish people had played a major part in the slave trade.

The assertion echoed an infamous tract published by the Nation of Islam, whose antisemitic leader, Louis Farrakhan, Mallory had also praised as “the GOAT,” or “greatest of all time,” on social media. 

In a statement to Jewish Insider on Tuesday, the Anti-Defamation League, which launched an online tool to monitor policies and personnel choices of the incoming administration, called Mallory “simply the wrong choice for a committee on community safety” and said that she has “made some highly insensitive remarks about Jews and money, which play directly into antisemitic tropes,” while aligning “herself with people like notorious antisemite Louis Farrakhan.”

“Given the fact that New York’s Jewish community is facing antisemitism and security threats at unprecedented levels, the mayor-elect needs to appoint someone who will unite, rather than divide, communities.” the ADL spokesperson said.

In 2020, Mamdani called on social media for Mallory to be released from custody after she and others were arrested during a social justice demonstration in Kentucky. Linda Sarsour, a Palestinian American activist and former Women’s March leader who also has espoused antisemitic rhetoric, has long been an ally of Mamdani, but was not appointed to a role on any of his transition committees.

Monica Klein, the communications director for Mamdani’s transition, said in a statement shared with JI on Tuesday that the newly announced “subcommittees are preparing to implement Mayor-elect Mamdani’s agenda of safety and security for Jewish New Yorkers and everyone else who calls this city home, including his pledge for an 800% increase in anti-hate crime prevention.”

Mallory did not respond to a request for comment.

After the appointees were publicized Monday, Jewish leaders were scouring the lists in group chats and private texts for signs of how the newly elected mayor, a democratic socialist and staunch critic of Israel, would approach issues of concern to the community.

“There are a lot of bad names,” one Jewish leader told JI, sharing screenshots of exchanges flagging some transition picks seen as problematic, such as an anti-Zionist rabbi and activists affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America, which is pushing Mamdani to divest from Israel when he takes office.

Other appointees who drew scrutiny were Alex Vitale, a professor of sociology at Brooklyn College who has called for an end to policing and will advise on community safety. 

The list included a number of outspoken detractors of Israel. Tahanie Aboushi, a civil rights lawyer and a former candidate for Manhattan district attorney who, like Mamdani, has endorsed boycotts against the Jewish state, will provide input on legal affairs. Lumumba Bandele, a member and organizer of the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement who is joining the community organizing team, has frequently accused Israel of genocide as well as apartheid, while calling Zionism “a crime against humanity,” among several other incendiary social media comments.

The tolerance of such heated rhetoric underscores how Mamdani’s election upended the conventional thinking that a winning candidate in New York — a place with the largest Jewish community of any city in the world — must show strong support for Israel, emboldening like-minded allies who are now poised to shape the administration. 

Still, some Jewish leaders were encouraged that Mamdani had chosen Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, the executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis, to join an emergency response committee, despite his past criticism of the mayor-elect’s views on Israel.

Potasnik, who was recently named the first chief chaplain of the New York City Police Department, said he had “no specifics” to share about his role at the moment, noting that Mamdani’s representatives advised new appointees to direct any press requests to the transition team. 

“There are going to be meetings discussing what we’re expected to do,” Potasnik told JI broadly. “I just think that it’s important to have constructive engagement discussing important issues impacting our lives in New York.”

Potasnik was a member of outgoing Mayor Eric Adams’ transition team, which featured more than 700 members and leaned heavily on the Orthodox community.

Mamdani, for his part, named a handful of rabbis to join his transition team, including Abby Stein, a top Jewish ally who identifies as an anti-Zionist and will advise on health issues, and Rachel Timoner, who is the leader of Congregation Beth Elohim, a Brooklyn Reform synagogue that hosted a discussion with the mayor-elect during the campaign. She is serving on the immigrant justice committee.

In addition to clergy members, Mamdani tapped a pair of former Jewish lawmakers, Helen Rosenthal and Ruth Messinger, and community activists such as Masha Pearl of the Blue Card Fund, a nonprofit providing financial support for Holocaust survivors. 

Rabbi Marc Schneier, a critic of Mamdani, spoke with the mayor-elect late last week after protesters had demonstrated outside Park East Synagogue, a Modern Orthodox congregation in Manhattan led by his father. 

He said that Mamdani — who had drawn backlash over his initial statement on the protest, which he revised this week — voiced interest in learning more about legislation to bar demonstrations from taking place outside houses of worship.

But while Schneier was encouraged that Mamdani had been receptive to his recommendation, he told JI that he did “not see things changing” with respect to other key issues, such as the mayor-elect’s refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

“If he continues to encircle himself with people who are going to support his limited understanding of Israel,” he said, “then we’re going to have a problem here.”

In a surprisingly chummy press conference, President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani spoke about their “productive” Oval Office meeting on Friday, yet mostly dodged questions on Israel and antisemitism.

“We had a great meeting. One thing in common, we want this city of ours that we love to do very well, and I wanted to congratulate the mayor. He really ran an incredible race against a lot of smart people,” said Trump. “We talked about getting housing built and food prices. The better he does, the happier I am.”

Mamdani said he “appreciated” the opportunity to meet with Trump and that he looks forward to working “together to deliver that affordability.”

Mamdani’s rise to mayor has drawn concern from pro-Israel and Jewish groups over his past rhetoric regarding Israel, including his inability to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which calls for violence against Jews. Mamdani has also threatened to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York 

On Thursday Mamdani distanced himself from protestors who gathered outside Park East Synagogue in Manhattan, however he suggested that the event, which provided information on immigrating to Israel, violated international law.

In response to a question directed at Mamdani regarding Thursday’s incident, Trump allowed the mayor-elect to evade the question, ultimately taking the conversation in a different direction. It was only at the conclusion of the press conference that Mamdani returned to the subject, reiterating similar comments he has made in the past, saying that he will “protect Jewish New Yorkers.” 

During the campaign, Trump said that any Jewish person who votes for Mamdani is a “self-professed Jew hater” and a “stupid person.” However, the president let much of his apparent differences with the mayor-elect on Israel slide. 

When asked whether he would stop Mamdani from arresting Netanyahu, Trump simply replied that the two “didn’t discuss” it, refraining from any confrontation on the issue. 

Mamdani said he “desperately” wants peace in the Middle East, however, he also noted that he wanted an end to taxpayer’ dollars “funding violations of human rights,” seeming at times to gesture toward Israel without calling out the Jewish state by name. 

“I’ve spoken about the Israeli government committing genocide, and I’ve spoken about our government funding it,” said Mamdani. “We have to follow through on international human rights, and still today those are being violated.”

Trump did not interject, instead remaining cordial with Mamdani and proceeding to call him “a rational person” that “wants to see New York be great again.”

In the run-up to the meeting, the president and Mamdani had traded barbs with each other. Mamdani has vowed to “Trump-proof” New York City, sharply criticizing the president’s immigration and economic policies. Meanwhile, Trump has called Mamdani “my little communist mayor” and has threatened to withhold federal funds. 

When asked about whether he will provide Mamdani with federal funding, Trump said he plans to “help him,” adding that he believes the mayor-elect “has a chance to do a great job.” 

“Some of his ideas, really, are the same ideas that I have,” said Trump. “We agree on a lot more than I would have thought. I want him to do a great job.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has ravaged U.S. businesses — particularly the retail and hospitality sectors — and placed thousands of Americans at risk of being evicted. But Richard Rubin, CEO of real estate company Repvblik, sees an opportunity amid the economic uncertainty.

Rubin believes his company’s business model of “adaptive reuse” — buying up old hotels and retail and commercial spaces and converting them into affordable workforce housing — is well suited to the changing economic environment.

“There’s just so much that goes into a building that was previously vacant and turning it around that is just hugely beneficial if one does a good job,” Rubin told Jewish Insider, “within not only the town or city or village or enclave in which one’s operating, but also, creating communities and homes for folks is really a special thing to do.”

Repvblik has so far opened just one converted building — a former Days Inn in Branson, Missouri, now known as Plato’s Cave — but has about 10 projects in the works across the country, with a goal of expanding further and constructing 20,000 total apartments within the next five years. 

“Things are definitely changing as far as people’s perception of the profitability of doing naturally occurring affordable housing within the U.S.,” he said. “We have the expertise and fortunately now the capital resources to make a reasonable impression in the market and hopefully deliver on a national basis many thousands of affordable housing units.”

Rubin added that he believes the carnage COVID will inflict on the real estate market has thus far been vastly understated.

“I think there’s gonna be a lot of adaptive reuse coming down the pike. I think it’s going to become the flavor of the day,” he said. “I think it’s going to become one of the most common forms… it’s going to become its own asset class, just based on what’s occurring.”

A room in “Plato’s Cave” in Branson, MO. (Courtesy)

Repvblik’s apartments target a niche group that Rubin said is vastly underserved: the workers who make up between 60% and 120% of the area median income — too much to qualify for subsidized housing, but not enough to afford the high-end housing on which many developers focus.

Rubin’s company also has its eye on potentially expanding into transitional housing for homeless people who are able to afford to pay some rent.

The entrepreneur got his start in the adaptive reuse market in his home country of South Africa. His company pioneered the field in Johannesburg’s Central Business District, he said, buying up high-rise commercial office spaces and converting them into multi-family apartments.

Rubin was not initially successful. His real estate business grew out of what he joked was the “most unsuccessful advertising agency in the world.” He originally looked at vacant buildings as potential advertising opportunities, but began to realize the real estate potential.

“I started to look at the fact that there were a million people coming into the city and a million people leaving,” he said. “And I thought, well, there’s got to be an opportunity for housing here.”

Rubin emphasized that in addition to the potential financial opportunities, a spirit of philanthropy and sustainability runs through his work.

“I come from very humble financial beginnings,” he said. “I know what it’s like to have a situation where one’s home is not as secure as one would want from a financial perspective.”

“Everything I’ve ever done has always been some confluence of capitalism and… philanthropy,” Rubin continued. “I feel pretty good about reusing assets.”

While still in South Africa, Rubin expanded into a pan-African student housing business and worked on a slum relocation project. He ultimately moved to the U.S. in 2015 after traveling there a year earlier for a student housing conference.

“I just set up shop here and just thought, there’s a huge opportunity to do this. And you know it’s been a very long road,” he said. “It was a difficult start. But I think we’re building quite a lot of momentum now… I think there’s a huge contribution we could make here.”