NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani hosted his first annual Interfaith Breakfast on Friday morning at the New York Public Library, bringing together faith leaders from across the city to share messages of unity, compassion, and collective action. The event, which carried the theme “Faith in Action,” culminated with Mayor Mamdani signing a sweeping executive order reaffirming New York City’s protections for immigrants against federal immigration enforcement abuses.
The executive order introduces several high-impact accountability measures, most notably expanding the Department of Investigation’s (DOI) oversight of sanctuary law compliance. The order also establishes a formal partnership with the City Council to ensure long-term transparency and legislative strength behind these protections.
Key provisions of the executive order include strict warrant requirements, establishing a clear prohibition on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents entering New York City property—including schools, shelters, and hospitals—without a judicial warrant. The measure reinforces existing sanctuary protections and aims to prevent unauthorized federal enforcement actions in sensitive locations.
The order also introduces enhanced privacy protections by strengthening data security rules to ensure that New Yorkers’ private information cannot be unlawfully accessed or shared with federal authorities. City agencies will be required to adopt tighter safeguards when handling personal data.
The executive order mandates regular audits for essential city agencies, requiring them to submit public safety audit reports to the mayor. These audits are intended to ensure full compliance with city laws and improve accountability across departments.
The order establishes a crisis coordination framework through the creation of an interagency committee tasked with rapidly aligning city policies in the event of a major federal immigration action. The committee is designed to improve preparedness and deliver a unified response to protect immigrant communities.
The gathering—attended by religious leaders representing Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism—opened with multi-faith prayers and songs celebrating inclusivity and humanity. “See the divine light in all people,” one performer urged as the audience joined interfaith chants invoking peace and togetherness.
Among the speakers was NYPL President Tony Marx, who framed the breakfast as a defense of knowledge and inclusion at a time of rising censorship. “When books are being banned and history erased, we stand for everyone’s right to learn and to be seen,” Marx said.
Aliya Latif, Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office of Faith-Based Partnerships, set the tone by connecting current deportation crackdowns to the moral call for action. “Defending our neighbors requires defending our Constitution,” Latif said, invoking the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “We will govern together, Inshallah—God willing—and our litmus test will be how we care for the most vulnerable among us.”
Faith leaders from different traditions echoed those sentiments. Imam Fayaz Jaffer of NYU’s Islamic Center reminded attendees that all people share divine dignity. “The Quran teaches that God has honored all the children of Adam,” he said. “To violate that dignity is not just a social failure—it is a moral failure.”
Reverend Jennifer Jones Austin, Rabbi Emily Cohen, Buddhist teacher Gige Yongdzin Rinpoche, Hindu priest Uddhab Sastri, and Reverend Juan Carlos Ruiz were among the other speakers who linked faith to social justice, immigrant solidarity, and anti-poverty work. Rabbi Cohen recounted her recent arrest while protesting ICE, saying, “Faith isn’t armor against others—it’s a warm coat against an icy world.”
When Mayor Mamdani took the podium, he reflected on his upbringing as a Muslim with a Hindu mother, describing how New York’s diversity shaped his moral view. “We need not worship the same God to share the same values,” he said. “If anything unifies us, it’s faith as a call to action.”
Condemning federal immigration enforcement, he recounted stories of local families harmed by ICE and declared the agency “a manifestation of the abuse of power.” Citing both scripture and civil rights figures from multiple faiths, Mamdani urged New Yorkers to stand “in defiance through compassion.”
He then signed an executive order restricting ICE access to city property—including schools, hospitals, and shelters—without a judicial warrant. The order also strengthens privacy protections, mandates audits across agencies, and creates a citywide response network to defend immigrants’ rights.
“No New Yorker should fear applying for childcare because they are undocumented,” Mamdani said. “City Hall will not look away.”
In closing, Mamdani invoked moral lessons from the Torah, the Bhagavad Gita, the Quran, and Dr. King, urging residents to define “who is a New Yorker” as broadly as possible. “Each generation must assert what we know to be true,” he said. “We are stronger when we welcome the stranger.”
Kishor Panthi
View More PostsKishor Panthi is the founder and editor-in-chief of Khasokhas and NepYork. He is the author of three books, “Kampan,” "UNTRANSLATABLE" and “Zero Mile.” He writes about social issues, immigration, and politics.
