Miss Israel in NY meets Dinowitz, not Mamdani

When someone connected to her team offered to see if Zohran Mamdani, Danielle Yablonka, Miss Universe Israel 2026, declined.

“I’m always open to meeting and having conversations, but I’m not looking to give a PR stunt opportunity to someone that doesn’t support my values, my country and my people’s right to exist,” she said.

Instead, Yablonka visited City Hall last week and met with other local leaders, including Eric Dinowitz, a Jewish member of the City Council from Riverdale who is chair of its Jewish caucus and co-chair of its bipartisan task force on Jew-hatred.

“Cultural visits like this are so incredibly important, because it allows us to start to see people as people and not as characters or demons,” Dinowitz said.

“There is a very well-organized attempt to demonize Israel and the Israeli people, and by extension the Jewish people are facing a large brunt of not just hate crimes but even being excluded from educational institutions or different professions,” he said.

In Mamdani’s first month in office, anti-Jewish hate crimes in New York City surged 182% compared to January 2025. Since then, a majority of hate crimes in the city have targeted Jews, even though Jewish New Yorkers only make up about 10% of city residents.

“I’ve met with countless students, who have said they felt excluded or have been excluded from study groups and clubs because of their shared ancestry,” Dinowitz said. He added that Council members Council met recently with healthcare professionals, “because we’ve seen a surge of antisemitism couched in anti-Zionism in the healthcare industry.”

“There’s a deep bond between New York City and Israel, and whether it’s hosting Miss Israel or meeting with elected officials from Israel, I am always looking to strengthen those bonds,” Dinowitz said.

Yablonka was visiting New York to walk in the “I Love Jewish Girls” runway show during New York Fashion Week.

Touring City Hall and meeting with elected officials are exactly the kinds of things that Miss Israel is supposed to do, according to Yablonka.

“I definitely felt good to have a representation within City Hall that was a Jewish member, who was proud enough and happy enough to welcome me,” she said.

Her biggest takeaway from meeting with Dinowitz was that “it’s all about building relationships between Israel and New York, and it’s about showing up, speaking up as a proud Jew, listening and finding common ground.”

“I’m sure it’s not easy for him as a councilman to be a Jewish, open Israel supporter when you have a mayor that doesn’t support your people, your country,” she said.

“Making actual change, meaningful change, starts in rooms with people who are the ones making it happen,” she said. (She referred to the song “The Room Where It Happens” from the Broadway musical “Hamilton.”)

The highlight of her City Hall tour, Yablonka said, was the historic Governor’s Room, which dates to around 1815 and which includes art and artifacts, including a desk that George Washington used.

“There is a painting of Washington in the room painted during the war, and in the picture, there are towns on fire behind Washington,” she observed.

“I love historical paintings, and I also realized while walking around how, as someone who’s studied art history, I just think that I’ve learned more about British history than I ever did about American history,” she said.

The visit gave Yablonka and Dinowitz the chance to share their experiences in America and Israel and compare notes on the political systems of both countries, according to Dinowitz.

“Israel and America are both strong, functioning democracies,” he said. “We have strengths and weaknesses in our system, and Israel has strengths and weaknesses in theirs. So it’s important to learn from one another to create a path forward to strengthening our respective democracies and our government.” —JNS