Chaos and confrontation erupted on July 21 outside the Astoria office of Assemblymember and mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani, where dueling protests exposed deep political and cultural divides in one of New York City’s most contentious election cycles.
Dozens of demonstrators waving American, Italian and Israeli flags gathered at 24-08 32nd St., on one side of 31st Street near Broadway, under the banner of the Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL), and were joined by members of New Yorkers First and the American Brotherhood Motorcycle Club. They opened the rally with the National Anthem and chants of “USA! USA!” They also displayed signs that “Italian American pride is not up for disrespect, #StopMamdani”
