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Fact check: What exactly did Zohran Mamdani say or post about September 11 2001 and in what year?
Executive Summary
Zohran Mamdani publicly recounted that a female relative stopped taking the subway after the September 11, 2001 attacks because she felt unsafe wearing a hijab; he first repeated that anecdote in public remarks in October 2025 and his campaign has posted similar 9/11 anniversary statements in prior years [1] [2]. The anecdote’s factual specifics—who exactly he meant by “aunt” and whether that person was alive and wore a hijab in 2001—became contested in late October 2025 after reporting and online scrutiny prompted Mamdani to clarify he was referring to a distant, now-deceased cousin rather than his only living aunt [3].
1. How Mamdani told the 9/11 story and when it surfaced publicly
Zohran Mamdani recounted the experience during remarks on Islamophobia in October 2025, saying that his aunt stopped taking the subway after 9/11 because she felt unsafe wearing a hijab, a line presented as part of a broader argument about post-9/11 targeting of Muslim women; reporting dated October 25–28, 2025 captured that public telling [1] [4]. Parallel reporting in September 2025 shows that Mamdani’s campaign has posted nearly identical 9/11 anniversary messages on social media for several years, with small edits over time and a noted absence of explicit mention of first responders until 2024, indicating that elements of Mamdani’s public 9/11 messaging predate the October controversy and that some statements have been repeated across years [2].
2. The factual challenge: relatives, locations, and hijab claims
Soon after the October 2025 speech, internet researchers and news reports flagged apparent inconsistencies: his only living aunt, Masuma Mamdani, reportedly lived in Tanzania during 2001 and does not wear a hijab, which contradicted the way the anecdote had been framed, prompting questions about accuracy and characterization [3] [5]. In response, Mamdani clarified that by “aunt” he meant a more distant relative—identified as a deceased cousin—and not his only living aunt, which the campaign says accounts for the discrepancy; that clarification acknowledges the initial imprecision while maintaining the core claim that a female relative felt unsafe after 9/11 [3].
3. Media timeline and what was posted online across years
Reporting in September 2025 documented a pattern in Mamdani’s campaign communications: nearly identical 9/11 anniversary posts were used repeatedly, with incremental changes, and critics noted that explicit language honoring 9/11 first responders appeared only in 2024 posts, which fueled accusations that his messaging had been politically curated rather than freshly reflective each year [2]. The October 2025 spotlight on the subway anecdote followed those earlier observations, showing that the controversy is part of a broader review of how Mamdani has framed 9/11 in public statements and on social platforms over multiple years [6] [2].
4. Political reactions and competing narratives in late October 2025
The anecdote and ensuing clarification produced sharp partisan responses: national Republicans and figures such as Vice President JD Vance publicly criticized Mamdani as insensitive to 9/11 victims and accused him of fabricating details, while supporters and some reporters emphasized that Muslim New Yorkers did face heightened harassment after 9/11, citing academic research documenting increased hate crimes against Muslim women, which places Mamdani’s broader point about post-9/11 Islamophobia in a documented context [5] [4]. The exchange demonstrates how an individual personal story can become a proxy battleground for larger debates over empathy, political messaging, and the memory of 9/11.
5. What remains confirmed, what is disputed, and why it matters
Confirmed facts: Mamdani publicly used a family anecdote in October 2025 about a relative avoiding the subway after 9/11, and he later clarified that he meant a distant, deceased cousin rather than his only living aunt [1] [3]. Disputed facts: whether his initial framing was misleading and why the precise relationship and the relative’s location and attire in 2001 were misstated or imprecisely described; those disputes drive accusations of dishonesty and insensitivity [3] [5]. The matter matters because personal narratives are central to political storytelling, and inaccuracies—real or perceived—reshape public trust during a high-profile mayoral campaign.
6. Bottom line for readers seeking the original quote and timeline
The clearest, verifiable timeline is: Mamdani used the subway anecdote in October 2025 public remarks; scrutiny followed because of contradictions about which relative he referenced and that relative’s circumstances in 2001; Mamdani then clarified he had been referring to a distant deceased cousin, not his only living aunt [1] [3]. For those who need the exact phrasing, reporting from October 25–28, 2025 quotes Mamdani saying a female relative “did not feel safe in her hijab” after 9/11; assessments of accuracy diverge depending on whether one focuses on the underlying pattern of post-9/11 harassment (supported by research) or on the precise familial identification he initially offered (which was corrected) [1] [4] [5].