New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani reaffirmed his previous calls for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be “abolished,” saying he understands New Yorkers’ “fear” of agents coming into their neighborhoods.
“As their mayor, I firmly believe that ICE should be abolished,” Mamadani said on the Latino USA podcast Friday. “That we should have an answer to the question of immigration with humanity at the heart of it. “I will not sit here beside you and proclaim the only way to respond to [immigration] is an agency that I’m older than.”
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New York City is a sanctuary city, meaning municipal agencies and local law enforcement cannot use city resources to assist federal immigration agencies.
The mayor further explained that he will not work with federal agencies to enforce the Trump administration’s immigration policy, recommitting himself to New York City’s sanctuary city status.
“We will continue to make clear that our city is not going to assist ICE in civil immigration and to make the argument that it is time for some moral courage when it comes to what the future of this agency looks like,” Mamdani said.
“Especially as we start to have more conversations about what a vision for our country looks like, especially within the Democratic Party,” he said.
Mamdani said he expressed his animosity toward ICE when he met with President Donald Trump.
“This is a very modern and rogue interpretation of what immigration enforcement should mean,” Mamdani said. “We are seeing people’s lives be ripped apart and for what? It seems like for the purpose of a narrative more than any actual desire for public safety and I shared that with the president directly.
“I said, ‘We have the NYPD,’” Mamdani said.
The comments echo other remarks Mamdani has made since he became mayor about abolishing ICE.
Shortly after taking office, Mamdani voiced his support for dismantling the agency on The View in January. He reiterated these remarks in early June on MS Now, calling on the Democratic Party to embrace his “abolish ICE” messaging amid ongoing protests outside of the Delaney Hall ICE facility in Newark, New Jersey.
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When pressed on this, Mamdani pushed back on the Democratic establishment that says his “abolish ICE” messaging is “unhelpful” to the party.
“We’ve listened to them before and look where we are,” Mamdani said. “I think it’s time to develop a new vision for this party, one that is unflinching in its beliefs and also uncompromising in its principles.”
