Mamdani’s antisemitism chief pledges trust-building amid early skepticism

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani at Interfaith Breakfast on Feb. 6. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

By Jacob Kornbluh February 13, 2026

Phylisa Wisdom, the progressive Jewish leader chosen to head New York City’s Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, says she is preparing to take a broad view of her mandate as she steps into the role under intense scrutiny.

In an exclusive interview with the Forward, her first since Mayor Zohran Mamdani named her last week, Wisdom laid out an ambitious early agenda focused on building trust across the city’s diverse Jewish communities and developing a comprehensive strategy modeled in part on the Biden White House’s national plan to counter antisemitism.

She described her overall approach as “being creative and committing resources to doing what we can to turn the tide.”

Wisdom, who is 39 and lives in Brooklyn, said Friday that one of her first steps when she assumes the role later this month will be launching a citywide “listening tour” spanning five borough-based hubs, including homes, schools and community centers. The goal is to understand the concerns and experiences of a broad cross-section of Jewish New Yorkers and build a sustainable relationship.

Her appointment comes as the city grapples with a sharp rise in antisemitic attacks and as the Mamdani administration faces scrutiny from the Jewish leaders after a divisive election shaped in part by his positions in opposition to Israel.

Wisdom acknowledged she faces a “challenging task” confronting rising antisemitism while serving a mayor whose anti-Zionist posture has left some questioning his commitment to the city’s prevention and response efforts.

Nonetheless, she stressed that the Mamdani administration is taking its commitment “very seriously,” and is prepared to deploy other city agencies to the work. Wisdom didn’t elaborate on how that cooperation would be structured. Mamdani outlined a broad framework for the office in his Day One executive order.

Serving as Mamdani’s point person on this issue, she said she aims to outline a framework to define antisemitism to help determine which incidents to investigate or pursue. The office, established by former Mayor Eric Adams last year through an executive order, initially adopted the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which considers most forms of anti-Zionism as antisemitic. Mamdani revoked the IHRA definition on his first day in office, prompting swift backlash from mainstream Jewish organizations.

To address the need for a working definition of antisemitism, Wisdom said she is looking to craft a city plan similar to the Biden White House’s national plan, which was released in 2023. Rather than adopting a single codified definition of antisemitism, Wisdom said the office will draw from the multiple established working definitions, including IHRA, the Nexus Document — which states that most criticism of Israel and Zionism is not antisemitic — and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, which was released in 2021 as a progressive alternative to IHRA.

“We want to ensure that it’s really focused on policy, practice and investment, and not getting caught up in the definitional fight,” Wisdom said. “I think the best practice is to use myriad resources, including those three definitions.”

Wisdom said she hopes to release the plan before the High Holidays in the fall, when Jewish communal life is most visible.

She added that the office will work closely with both the New York City Commission on Human Rights and the New York State Division of Human Rights to coordinate enforcement and education efforts. Wisdom said she is also considering reviving the previous administration’s interagency task force on antisemitism to ensure cross-agency collaboration, including the New York Police Department and the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes.

Orthodox backlash 

Wisdom’s appointment drew immediate backlash from Orthodox leaders and activists over her past work at an advocacy group that has pushed for enforcement of state secular education standards in yeshivas.

Wisdom, who had been the executive director of the progressive and pro-Zionist New York Jewish Agenda since 2023, was previously director of development and government affairs at Yaffed, which scrutinized yeshivas in Brooklyn over inadequate secular education. That history was not mentioned in City Hall’s official bio for Wisdom, an omission that immediately fueled suspicion.

The backlash also sharpened a political contradiction Mamdani himself has cultivated. During the campaign, he promised Satmar and other Hasidic sects that he would protect yeshivas from government intervention.

In the interview, Wisdom indicated that she has moved past her prior activism to focus on the office’s singular task: combating antisemitism in all its forms. She said she’s “acutely aware” that Orthodox New Yorkers “face the lion’s share” of antisemitic incidents in the city and that protecting visibly Jewish communities would be a top priority. Questions about yeshiva curriculum policy, she added, fall under the purview of the Department of Education.

Wisdom also pointed to her work at NYJA advancing a state hate crimes bill and helping implement the Stop Hiding Hate social media reporting law as evidence of her experience translating advocacy into enforceable policy.

“We are really going to be thinking about, rather than a sledgehammer approach, a scalpel approach to combating antisemitism,” Wisdom said. “One that will ensure  all Jewish New Yorkers can feel safe and belong in the city.”