Petition Erupts: Who Controls 9/11 Remembrance?

A petition by 9/11 families calls New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani an unwelcome guest at the 25th Ground Zero ceremony—and it is forcing a sharp test of who sets the terms of remembrance.

Story Snapshot

9/11 family members launched a petition to bar Mayor Mamdani from the 25th anniversary ceremony.
Petitioners cite his handling of “globalize the intifada” rhetoric and associations they view as troubling.
News reports say signatures topped 1,100, including hundreds from victims’ families.
No formal decision from event organizers has been documented in the record provided.

A Families’ Petition Collides With City Ritual

Family members of 9/11 victims are asking organizers to keep Mayor Zohran Mamdani away from the 25th anniversary at Ground Zero. The petition frames his presence as out of step with the day’s sacred purpose. It claims more than 1,100 signatures, including at least 300 from victims’ families, according to press accounts. The petition points to a pattern: reluctance to denounce “globalize the intifada,” praise for a controversial imam, and ties to figures who minimized or excused extremist violence.

Supporters of the petition argue from lived loss, not cable-show outrage. One widower told a reporter that Mamdani’s record does not meet the moral bar the day demands. He cited associations with people who said America “deserved” the attacks and a broader failure, in his view, to recognize the weight of that morning in 2001. This is the core of the families’ plea: remembrance requires moral clarity first, politics last.

The Specific Claims Driving The Firestorm

The Change.org text lays out the case in plain terms. It says Mamdani did not clearly and forcefully condemn “globalize the intifada,” a chant that many Americans hear as a call to violent struggle, especially painful near Ground Zero. It flags his praise of Imam Siraj Wahhaj, described by critics as linked to radical networks decades ago. It even cites writings by Mamdani’s father that, according to the petition, softened the moral line on suicide bombers after 9/11. Each point pushes the same button: trust.

Separate coverage shows the issue did not appear from thin air. Past reporting highlighted criticism of Mamdani’s connection to Hasan Piker after Piker said “America deserved” 9/11. That charge stuck in the public mind and became a shorthand for a deeper worry about judgment and priorities. Protests and media hits followed, with some activists telling Mamdani to stay away from Ground Zero entirely. The petition gathers those strands into one ask: do not let him stand at the memorial this year.

Where The Record Is Solid—and Where It Is Thin

Solid ground first: the petition exists, and it names real concerns, not vague gripes. The reported signature counts suggest a meaningful slice of families support it, though exact verification remains a live task. The moral thrust is clear and understandable. Yet the evidentiary spine is thinner than the rhetoric. The petition relies heavily on associations and perceived reluctance to condemn a chant, not on a direct quote where Mamdani endorses violence or mocks the dead. That matters if fairness and due process still count.

BREAKING: Families of 9/11 victims are calling to bar Zohran Mamdani from the 25th anniversary ceremony at Ground Zero, calling him an “unwelcome guest.” pic.twitter.com/wWplngFWYd

— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) July 25, 2026

Coverage also notes that Mamdani has posted annual tributes to the nearly 3,000 victims for years, though critics call them boilerplate and repetitive. That habit undercuts claims that he ignores the day, even if some see the tone as canned. CNN separately reported he clarified a family anecdote after backlash, which shows he will answer some disputes directly, though not this one in full context yet. The cleanest missing piece is primary-source transcripts of the remarks the petition cites.

What Organizers Owe The City, And What The City Owes Families

Organizers and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum now face a hard choice with no public rulebook in view. If they exclude a sitting mayor, they will set a civic precedent that associations, not direct statements, can decide who may stand at Ground Zero. If they admit him without explanation, they risk appearing to shrug at the families’ moral lines. American conservative common sense favors two steps here: publish the attendance criteria and address the petition’s specific claims with direct, sourced replies.

The better path is sunlight. Release the criteria for invitations. Provide the transcripts and full context of the “intifada” exchanges and any remarks about Imam Siraj Wahhaj or Hasan Piker. Confirm or correct the petition’s counts of family signers. If the record clears Mamdani, say so and explain why. If it does not, set a principled standard for exclusion that can apply to any official, now or later. The day belongs to the fallen and their families. The process must honor that truth without bending facts to rage.