New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks in front of stacks of medical protective supplies, during a news conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, in New York City, New York, amid the coronavirus outbreak, March 24, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Mike Segar / File.

“I am here to say that I am sorry. I am sorry for the pain and anguish you felt on October 7 and every day since. I’m sorry for any antisemitism you have experienced and the repugnant behavior of demonstrators masked as Hamas that you have endured. I’m sorry if you have not felt safe on the streets right here in your own hometown. … I’m sorry for my mistaken assumption that widespread antisemitism could never happen again in modern sophisticated, educated society, and certainly not in New York City.”

When I first found out that Andrew Cuomo was running for mayor — partially on a hard-hitting platform of combating antisemitism — I was more than a bit wary, as I suspect many New Yorkers were. Cuomo did not exactly make a graceful exit in 2021, wracked by allegations of sexual misconduct and nursing home deaths from Covid.

But then I heard the speech he gave on April 1 at the West Side Institutional Synagogue. It was everything we’ve been wanting to hear from every American and European leader since October 7 — but only a few were brave enough to state the obvious: the truth. And there’s no question that both Cuomo and his father, Mario, were strong on understanding that Zionism is a subset of liberalism; if you’re not a Zionist, you’re not a liberal.

Under Andrew Cuomo, New York became the first state to oppose the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, and then the first state to counter BDS by an executive order saying that if a company boycotts Israel, New York will boycott the company.

Cuomo didn’t just list all of the ways he will fight the surge of antisemitism in our schools and on our streets. He said the words that every New Yorker has been waiting to hear: With the largest Jewish population outside of Israel, “New York City should set the precedent” in fighting this century’s violent antisemitism.

According to Cuomo, “We must stop the disinformation being spoon fed in many of our educational institutions. … We must stop the flow of funding from countries dictating a biased curriculum. If they want to teach bias and misinformation, then it should be called for what it is … they must hold themselves to a higher standard or we will.”

Cuomo said that his administration will show no ambivalence in its full support of both Israel and Jews in the United States. “Any ambivalence by government officials will only fuel the opposition. And the truth is the forces of antisemitism and pro-Palestinian policies are organized, well funded, and mobilized, and have significant political strength, even right here in the city of New York.”

Cuomo then detailed the illiberal ideas of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA); two of his eight opponents are members of the DSA, the others could be called DSA-adjacent. “The DSA advocates that Israel is a racist apartheid state that is engaged in ethnic cleansing. On October 7th, they proclaimed ‘long live the resistance.’”

Meanwhile, one DSA Assemblyman proposed a bill that would revoke the not-for-profit designation of any organization that aided Israel.

“Remember this is happening here,” said Cuomo. “Silence is acceptance. This country made that mistake once and must never make it again.”

Nearly 7,000 Jewish city voters recently registered as Democrats ahead of the June mayoral primary. The number of registered Jewish Democrats in New York is now more than 600,000.

“No one should feel they should take off their yarmulke to walk down the street. No one should think they should put the Star of David inside their shirt. No one should feel the need to look over their shoulder leaving a synagogue. This city must ensure that you feel safe on every street every day, every hour. That must be the mandate. If you discriminate or harass an individual on the basis of their religion, or destroy property, that is illegal, and people must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. No more slaps on the wrist, no more excuses,” Cuomo added.

“New York would not be New York without the Jewish community,” he said. “It has been part of New York City since its first days on the tip of lower Manhattan when the first immigrants stepped off the boats. It’s our legacy at this pivotal moment. Let New York City set the international standard of a people, of a government, of a society that has zero tolerance for any antisemitic act of any kind. … As Rabbi [Jonathan] Sacks said, peace is a duet not a solo. It cannot be made by one side alone; if it could, it would’ve been made long ago.”

Karen Lehrman Bloch is editor in chief of White Rose Magazine. A different version of this article was published by The Jewish Journal.