NYC Mayor Mamdani Criticized for Skipping Pulaski Day Parade, Reclassifying Polish Heritage Event

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing sharp criticism from Polish American leaders for his decision to skip the annual Pulaski Day Parade and for his administration's move to reclassify a dedicated Polish heritage event as a broader Eastern European celebration.

Mamdani, who was invited to the Oct. 4 Pulaski Day Parade, did not attend. Instead, his office sent out invitations for an Eastern European reception scheduled for Oct. 22 at Gracie Mansion. This move has been met with anger from many in the Polish community, who identify as Central European and reject the "Eastern European" label due to its historical association with Soviet communism.

"Polish Americans are one of the largest European ethnic communities in America. Lumping Poles, Ukrainians, and Russians together shows shocking historical ignorance and disrespect," said Grzegorz Fryc, a longtime NYC Polish activist and business leader. "Mayor Mamdani couldn't be bothered to attend the Pulaski Day Parade, and now his administration wants to replace the traditional Polish Heritage celebration at Gracie Mansion with some generic ‘Eastern European’ event.'"

Fryc compared the situation to how other ethnic groups are treated, stating, "Would City Hall combine Jewish and Palestinian heritage celebrations into one generic ‘Middle Eastern’ event? Of course not. This is another slap in the face to our community and an embarrassment for the mayor’s office."

Under former Mayor Eric Adams, a tradition of hosting an annual breakfast reception at Gracie Mansion to honor Polish heritage was established. This tradition appears to have been discontinued by the Mamdani administration.

According to sources, City Hall initially considered including the Polish community in a broader Eastern European heritage event in 2024. However, following outrage from Polish American leaders, Mayor Adams hosted a separate celebration for them that November, continuing the practice in his final year in office.

Mamdani's absence from the Pulaski Day Parade adds to a pattern of skipping certain parades since taking office in January. He also did not attend the Christopher Columbus Day parades in Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn, nor the German-American Steuben Parade and the Israel Day Parade. These absences have drawn accusations of bias from some elected officials.

"Mamdani clearly hates Europeans, especially white New Yorkers. Period," wrote former Councilman Robert Holden on X in response to the mayor's parade absences. "First, he snubbed German-Americans at the Steuben Day Parade. Then Polish-Americans at [the] Pulaski Day Parade. Now Italian-Americans on Columbus Day. What does that tell you? I call it racism, plain and simple."

Mamdani has, however, attended parades honoring Pakistani, Sikh, West Indian, and African American communities, as well as the St. Patrick's Day Parade and the Greek Independence Day Parade.

A spokesperson for City Hall, Jimmy Wyderko, stated, "Mayor Mamdani is deeply grateful and proud of the contributions Polish Americans have made towards our city in Greenpoint, Ridgewood and across all five boroughs — and we are excited to host Polish New Yorkers at Gracie Mansion." Wyderko did not directly address the decision to group Polish Americans into a broader Eastern European event.