The UFT's Mamdani endorsement: Letters to the Editor — July 10, 2025
In choosing Zohran Mamdani, the UFT has shown it accepts the whole package of what he stands for — including Jew hatred and government seizure of private property ('Lefty UFT endorses radical Mamdani,' July 9).
If anything, this action calls for school choice: To give parents the option of placing their children in schools that actually teach the basics, rather than political indoctrination.
Bill Isler
Floral Park
In the past, any communist or fascist would have to seize power by force of arms. In today's New York City, it turns out all a communist has to do is offer the United Federation of Teachers a raise.
Christopher O'Keefe
Manhattan
I am ashamed of my union for doing this. This endorsement came from a meeting of the union's Delegate Assembly, apparently made up of leftist, antisemitic communists.
How could the UFT endorse a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions advocate who refuses to acknowledge Holocaust Remembrance and is rumored to make Jamaal Bowman, an anti-Israel poor imitation of a human being, the next chancellor of New York City schools?
To protest this outrage, I am asking my fellow UFT colleagues to withdraw from giving to COPE, a financial political action group of the UFT.
Ed Greenspan
Brooklyn
Mass insanity at New York City's teachers union overcomes intelligence. The UFT is blind to Mamdani's threat to our fragile democracy.
Thomas Birnbaum
Manhattan
I was taken aback when I read in The Post that the United Federation of Teachers voted to endorse antisemite Mamdani for New York City mayor. How support of Mamdani helps the city's public schools is lost on me, or any thinking person for that matter.
However, on reflection, I remembered that this was the teachers union that denounced the attempts by parents to control what was taught to their children.
This rabble organization of teachers cares not for the betterment of students, but only for paychecks and pensions.
Frank Olivieri
Ft. Myers, Fla.
So, the UFT has endorsed Zohran Mamdani for mayor. As teachers, how stupid can they possibly be for backing a snake-oil salesman?
I'll bet a boatload of chalk that these teachers will tell their students to tell their parents to vote for Mamdani.
The election is less than four months away; there's still time to pack up and leave New York for good.
Harve Kaye
Brooklyn
The Issue: Elon Musk's threat to launch a third national party amid his disapproval of President Trump.
In theory, the new political party proposed by Elon Musk as a third alternative could be a great divider with just a few wins in the House and Senate ('Get Real, Elon,' Glenn Harlan Reynolds, July 8).
The problem, however, is that the basis of this party seems to be both spite and an attempt to gain power over President Trump.
A rival party is not a positive idea, and thus it might be better for Musk to step away and spend his time and money on solving one of the world's many problems.
Dennis Fitzgerald
Melbourne, Australia
It appears Elon Musk wants to create a new national political party as revenge due to President Trump and the Republican Party no longer being his puppets and passing the One Big Beautiful Bill.
Musk should go back to the country where he was born — which is not the United States — to create his new political party.
Cecelia Clark
St. Petersburg, Fla.
Want to weigh in on today's stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@nypost.com. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.
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New York Post
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Socialist Zohran Mamdani plans to declare war on charter schools if he's elected mayor, according to a survey he answered — sparking outrage from advocates and parents who called the frontrunner candidate's views 'very misguided.' The 33-year-old Queens assemblyman said he would fight efforts to open more charters, which largely educate minority, working-class students, and even opposed the schools sharing space in city-owned buildings. 'I oppose efforts by the state to mandate an expansion of charter school operations in New York City,' he said in a Staten Island Advance questionnaire before the June 24 Democratic primary. Advertisement 4 Socialist Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani plans to declare war against charter schools that largely educate minority students if he's elected mayor, according to a survey he answered. 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'I also oppose the co-locating of charter schools inside DOE school buildings, but for those already co-located my administration would undertake a comprehensive review of charter school funding to address the unevenness of our system,' the survey said. Advertisement 'Matching funds, overcharged rent, and Foundation Aid funding would be part of this audit as my administration determined how to manage the reality of co-located schools and legal entitlements,' Mamdani claimed. 4 Mamdani's public view on charter schools strikes a similar viewpoint of the United Federation of Teachers union, which has endorsed him for mayor in the upcoming November general election. Stephen Yang It's not the only controversial part of his education platform — which also includes wanting to cede the mayor's control over the nation's largest school system. Charter school advocates said Mamdani was a foe, not an ally, during his four years in the state Assembly. 'As a member of the Assembly, Mr. Mamdani has made clear that he was not supportive of charter schools or even the families that chose them, but he has recently and repeatedly said he would be a mayor for all New Yorkers — and that, of course, has to include the nearly 150,000 charter school students and their families,' said NYC Charter School Center CEO James Merriman. Merriman said he wants to meet Mamdani's team to correct 'misinformation' about the charter school sector. 4 The Democratic nominee's viewpoints on charter schools are a controversial part of his platform, while advocates call out Mamdani for being a foe to the charter school system during his time in the state Assembly. Stephen Yang Arthur Samuels, executive director of the Math, Engineering, and Science Academy (MESA) Charter High School, argued charter schools are serving Mamdani's affordability mission by providing a free education to struggling families who can't afford to pay private tuition or move to the suburbs. Advertisement 'I can't think of anything more empowering to those families than providing choice and agency,' said Samuels, who is opening a second MESA charter school in Dyker Heights this fall. There are 286 charter schools in the city serving about 150,000 students, or 15 of publicly-funded schools. Students in charter schools typically outperform their counterparts in traditional schools on the state's English Language Arts and math standardized exams. Most charters have a longer school day and school year than traditional schools, and their teaching staff are non-union. Advertisement Last year, 58.2% of charter students scored proficient on the ELA test — 9.1 percentage points higher than their district counterparts, 49.1%. Meanwhile, 66.3% of charter students passed the math test, compared to 53.4% of traditional public school students. — a near 13-percentage-point gap. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio sought to stymie the charter school sector. But a state law approved by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the legislature forced the city to provide space to charter schools or pay their rent to operate in a private building. The current Democratic-run legislature has opposed charter school expansion.
