New pain for some 9/11 families as New York’s mayor finds himself in commemoration controversy | CNN

Twenty-five years after the mayor of New York City became the champion of America’s grief and resilience at the time of the 9/11 attacks, families of those killed are split on whether the current mayor should attend the annual remembrance. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the first Muslim to hold the office, said he would “proudly honor” those affected by standing alongside them at ground zero, but some relatives of victims say they don’t want him there. “I don’t know if I could stomach that,” Robert Hughes told CNN. Others are unhappy the focus is on the mayor — in part because of his political ideology and his identity — and not their loved ones. For Liz Miller, it is time for acceptance, not division. “Unity can represent itself as kindness and compassion towards others, even when you do think differently,” she said. Mamdani, a democratic socialist who is a lightning rod especially for those on the right, is now the subject of a petition to have him banned from ceremonies commemorating what happened. Opponents castigate him for what they say are extremist views on his support for Palestinian rights and criticism of the Israeli government. It’s another point of press