New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s wife, artist Rama Duwaji, is facing scrutiny after it emerged that she created an illustration for an essay written by an activist who has made highly controversial statements about Jews and praised the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.
The illustration appeared in a publication connected to the organization Slow Factory, accompanying an essay titled “A Trail of Soap” by Palestinian-American writer Susan Abulhawa.
Abulhawa has previously drawn criticism for social media posts describing Jews with terms such as “vampires,” “demons,” and “ghouls,” and for comments about the Oct. 7 Hamas assault that killed about 1,200 people in Israel. (RELATED: Jewish Congressman Releases Chilling Death Threat Message)
Essay tied to controversial rhetoric
In an op-ed published in The Electronic Intifada shortly after the attack, Abulhawa described the Hamas assault as a “spectacular moment that shocked the world” and suggested it inspired “freedom fighters” around the world.
“Whether or not Israel indeed knew of the plans in advance, those few freedom fighters inspired not only the whole of Palestine, but the oppressed masses worldwide, to imagine what freedom looks like; what resistance is possible; and what life is attainable,” she exclaimed.
Other social media posts attributed to the author criticized Israel in inflammatory terms, including statements referring to “Jewish supremacist vampires” and other derogatory language targeting Jews.
The Anti-Defamation League and other groups have previously criticized Abulhawa for what they describe as extreme rhetoric toward Jews and Israel.
The Washington Free Beacon continues:
Abulhawa has spent the years since Oct. 7 offering thinly veiled attacks against Israelis, “Zionists,” and “Jewish supremacists” on social media.
She wrote in one December post on X that Israelis are “rootless, soulless ghouls” and in September called Israel a “cultureless, rootless human aberration in the form of a manufactured ‘nation,'” adding that “we live in the time of jewish supremacist demons.”
Also in September, Abulhawa described a pro-Israel commentator as a “lying Jewish supremacist cockroach” and bemoaned “Dual loyalty zionists.”
Abulhawa described Israelis as “demonic parasite[s]” in a November post in which she said “Israel must be dismantled if humanity is going to have any chance at a moral future” and in another post said “we will have our revenge someday” against the “sons of satan.”
Duwaji says illustration was a freelance commission
A spokesperson for Duwaji said the New York City first lady did not have a personal relationship with Abulhawa and was commissioned by an outside publisher to illustrate the excerpt.
“As is common for freelance illustrators, the First Lady was commissioned to illustrate an excerpt of Abulhawa’s book by an outside publisher,” the spokesperson said. “She has never engaged with or met Susan Abulhawa, nor had she seen the tweets in question.”
The spokesperson also said Duwaji was unaware of the controversial posts attributed to Abulhawa at the time she accepted the commission.
Scrutiny follows earlier social media controversy
The latest controversy comes just days after reports surfaced that Duwaji had liked several Instagram posts that framed the Oct. 7 Hamas attack as “resistance.”
One post she liked showed images of militants breaching the Israel-Gaza border barrier and riding on a captured Israeli military vehicle with slogans referencing resistance to Israeli occupation.
The activity sparked criticism from Jewish organizations and political opponents of the mayor.
Mamdani distances City Hall from spouse’s views
Mamdani has emphasized that his wife is a private citizen with no formal role in his administration, distancing City Hall from her social media activity and artistic work.
“My wife is the love of my life, and she’s also a private person who has held no formal position in my campaign or in my City Hall,” the mayor said when asked about the controversy.
A City Hall spokesperson also reiterated that Mamdani has consistently condemned Hamas and the Oct. 7 attacks, describing them as a terrorist assault and a “horrific war crime.”
Political fallout
The controversy has drawn attention in New York because the city is home to the largest Jewish population outside Israel, and relations between the mayor’s political movement and Jewish communities have been closely watched.
Critics argue the revelations raise concerns about rhetoric surrounding Israel and antisemitism, while supporters of Mamdani say the mayor himself has clearly condemned violence against civilians and should not be held responsible for his spouse’s activities.
For now, the controversy has intensified scrutiny of America’s most well-known mayor as debates over Israel, Gaza and, antisemitism continue to shape politics in New York and across the United States.
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I still cannot believe one single jewish person voted for mandummi. What is the matter with NYC’s peoples’ brains? I thought NOBODY could be dumb enough to vote for this dang terrorist.
The entire muslim mid east region is enormous, and dwarfs that little tiny, tiny nation of Israel, that is about the size of New Jersey, and is so ridiculous that it shows their toxic mentality. What a revelation. They hate Israel, who is the only civilized country in that area, that they show their pettiness is a shame to their intellect. They are enriched with their own land, but they want that tiny, tiny little Israel to the point of shame in their pettiness.
In addition to this, they hate Israel so deeply that they bully, demonize and attack Israel at every turn, for 5,000 years. How evil can one get… to wage wars and death and chaos for that tiny, tiny bit of land that God personally gave them even before they were born. Read in Numbers 34:1-15 the boundaries of God’s gift to His chosen people on His earth, not their earth. Those boundaries are documented for all to see. Those who cannot see this don’t want to see it, and their pettiness and their toxic hate is showing for all to see… and God sees every one of them.