An appointee to lead New York Mayor-elect Zahran Mamdani’s recruitment efforts resigned Thursday after anti-Semitic posts surfaced on social media.
Catherine Almonte da Costa resigned a day after Mamdani was named director of hiring, with responsibilities for setting his department’s hiring strategy.
“I spoke with the mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized to him, and expressed deep regret for my previous statements,” Da Costa said in a statement through Mamdani’s transition team. “These statements do not refer to my identity.”
She added: “As a mother of Jewish children, I feel a deep sense of sadness and remorse for the harm these words have caused. Since this has become a distraction from the work I do, I have tendered my resignation.”
In remarks after Mamdani announced her appointment on Wednesday, Da Costa described “building a mission-oriented and highly capable government, one that includes diverse leaders with the skill and experience to turn vision into results” and recruiting talent “to reflect the rich diversity of race, religion, geography, language and ethnicity that defines the city.”
The social media posts, which were first reported by Judge Street Magazinea political newscast in New York, dating back more than a dozen years. She was First published By the New York and New Jersey Chapter of the Anti-Defamation League.
In a 2011 post from a now-deleted Twitter account, now known as X, da Costa referred to “money-hungry Jews,” and in a post the following year she wrote that “the Far Rockaway train is the Jewish train,” according to the newsletter.
The Anti-Defamation League did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment Thursday night.
The group’s branch in New York and New Jersey He wrote on X that Da Costa’s old posts “echo classic anti-Semitic tropes and offend Jewish people.”
“Tweeting about ‘money-hungry Jews’ is indefensible,” the chapter stated. “We appreciate that Da Costa has relationships with members of the Jewish community, but her posts require immediate explanation – not only from Ms. Da Costa, but also from the Mayor-elect.”
Mamdani said in a statement, “Catherine expressed deep remorse for her previous statements and tendered and accepted her resignation.”
A spokesperson for Mamdani told NBC News that the posts were not discovered during the transitional screening process.
During the election campaign, Mamdani, who will be the city’s first Muslim mayor when he is sworn in on January 1, sought to defend himself against allegations of anti-Semitism, particularly regarding his criticism of the Israeli government and opponents’ claims that he had no plan to combat anti-Semitism in the city.
Da Costa’s resignation comes in the wake of calls from Jewish groups in the United States to enhance security at public events to protect against acts of anti-Semitism.
Last weekend, two gunmen opened fire on Bondi Beach in Australia during a Hanukkah celebration. The surviving suspect faces charges including terrorism and murder in connection with the shooting deaths of 15 people. The suspect’s lawyer did not present any defenses during his video court appearance on Wednesday. Associated Press I mentioned.