GOP Candidate Blasts Mamdani for Erasing Little Italy from Map
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman accused New York City's socialist mayor of deliberately excluding Little Italy and other traditional immigrant neighborhoods from an official map.
Bruce Blakeman, currently serving as Nassau County Executive, on Friday condemned Mayor Zohran Mamdani for excluding Little Italy from a map titled “New York City Immigrant Enclaves,” according to Marie Pohl and Victor Nava writing in New York Post.
The map showcases 30 immigrant neighborhoods across New York’s five boroughs, including Koreatown in Manhattan, Little Pakistan in Brooklyn, and Little Yemen in The Bronx. However, the famous Italian-American enclave in Lower Manhattan was conspicuously absent, triggering widespread criticism since early July.
Speaking at an event in the overlooked neighborhood, Blakeman argued the exclusion extended beyond Little Italy. He pointed out that Little Odessa in Brooklyn, Greek-American Astoria, and Irish-American Hell’s Kitchen were also left off the map.
The Nassau County executive characterized the omission as part of a deliberate approach by Mamdani of denigrating the immigrants that came here before and built this city, adding that the mayor has no respect for those who hold different views.
Blakeman cited additional examples to support his claim of a pattern. Mamdani canceled the traditional Puerto Rican Day breakfast at Gracie Mansion last month, declined to attend the Israel Day parade in May, and skipped the installation of New York’s new archbishop, Ronald Hicks, in February.
Mike Crispi, president of the Italian American Civil Rights League, addressed approximately 100 attendees holding signs reading “Little Italy Forever.” He emphasized that Italian Americans throughout the tri-state area—from Arthur Avenue to Staten Island, Howard Beach, and Queens—felt insulted by the map’s exclusion.
Crispi declared that Italian Americans have contributed enormously to the city and will not allow their community’s identity to be stripped away.
Earlier this month, Mamdani attempted to deflect responsibility for the controversial map onto his predecessor, former Mayor Eric Adams. The current mayor claimed the map was originally created by the previous administration in 2023, and his office merely added a few additional neighborhoods after inheriting it.
Mamdani acknowledged the map does not represent an exhaustive list of the more than 200 ethnic enclaves in the city, and promised future revisions would include Little Italy.
The event was sponsored by Turning Point USA. At its conclusion, Sicilian artist Sergio Furmari unveiled a statue of Charlie Kirk that he intends to display in Times Square on September 10, marking the one-year anniversary of the conservative activist’s assassination.
With information from New York Post
