Anila Ali, board chair and president of American Muslim & Multifaith Women’s Empowerment Council, with Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter.
For the First Time, a Muslim Group Is Slated to March in the Israel Day Parade on Fifth Avenue
Dr. Anila Ali of AMMWEC will lead approximately 30 marchers in the 62nd annual Israel Day Parade on May 31 — in what is believed to be a first in the parade’s 61-year history. Separately, New York City’s mayor will not participate for the first time in recent memory.
New York City — In what is believed to be a historic first in the 61-year history of New York’s annual Israel Day Parade, a Muslim-led group will march on Fifth Avenue this year alongside Jewish organizations, day schools, yeshivas, and thousands of Israel supporters. Dr. Anila Ali — Pakistan-born founder, board chair, and president of the American Muslim & Multifaith Women’s Empowerment Council (AMMWEC) — intends to lead a contingent of approximately 30 people through the iconic route alongside Central Park on May 31, 2026, for the parade’s 62nd edition. The development was first reported by Debra Nussbaum Cohen in an exclusive interview for JNS.org.
The decision carries profound symbolism at a moment when anti-Israel protesters have been disrupting Jewish neighborhoods and sowing fear in communities across the country. Dr. Ali was direct in her message: those voices do not represent all Muslims. She and many others stand with the Jewish community and with Israel’s right to exist.
After 9/11, the first faith community that reached out to us were the Jewish people. Now, at a time when Jewish people are being targeted by antisemitic protesters, we want to return that support.
— Dr. Anila Ali, Founder & President, AMMWECAli recalled the bonds forged between Muslim and Jewish Americans in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks — when nearly 3,000 lives were lost to Islamist terrorism and Muslims across America feared backlash and retaliation. It was the Jewish community that stepped forward first.
“As the largest Muslim women’s civil rights organization standing against bigotry within and without, we had a very close relationship based on trust that we shared common heritage,” she told JNS. That relationship, built in crisis, now inspires a public act of solidarity.
A lot of people are afraid, but we are not.
— Dr. Anila Ali, when asked about potential backlash for marchingAli has publicly invited other Muslim organizations to join the march, framing participation as an act of both courage and conscience. AMMWEC has a documented track record of interfaith bridge-building: delegations to Israel, joint events with Jewish organizations, and forceful advocacy against extremism and antisemitism — including a public condemnation of Hamas’s use of sexual violence on October 7, 2023.
Dr. Anila Ali
Pakistan-born American Muslim author, educator, and civil rights advocate. Dr. Ali leads the American Muslim & Multifaith Women’s Empowerment Council (AMMWEC), described as the largest Muslim women’s civil rights organization standing against bigotry from within and without.
A consistent advocate for interfaith partnership and the Abraham Accords, Dr. Ali has represented American Muslim voices for peace, solidarity, and democratic values on the national and international stage — including at the Israeli Embassy’s 78th Independence Day reception in Washington, D.C., in May 2026.
The parade will also mark an unprecedented absence. For the first time in recent memory, New York City’s mayor will not participate. Mayor Zohran Mamdani — the city’s first Muslim mayor, sworn into office on January 1, 2026 — has made clear since his college years that he does not believe the State of Israel has a right to exist.
As a New York State Assemblymember, Mamdani introduced the “Not On Our Dime” Act in 2023, seeking to strip nonprofit status from organizations that fund Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria. Though re-introduced in 2025, the bill was broadly opposed and never came to a vote. He has also stated he would have the Israeli prime minister arrested in New York City.
📋 Context: The City & the Parade
New York City is home to approximately 1 million Jewish residents — the largest Jewish population of any city outside Israel. The Israel Day Parade, organized annually by the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York (JCRC-NY), is one of the largest pro-Israel public gatherings in the world.
Immediately upon being sworn in, Mayor Mamdani revoked many of his predecessor’s executive orders, including those providing legal protections against antisemitism and anti-Zionism — a move that drew sharp criticism from Jewish community leaders and civil rights advocates.
Sources at JCRC-NY, as a matter of security policy, do not comment on participating groups or confirm historical precedents for participation by any community.
Against this backdrop, Dr. Ali’s decision to march stands in sharp contrast — a Muslim American choosing solidarity over silence, and the street over the sidelines. The 2026 parade’s theme, “Proud Americans, Proud Zionists,” will take on new resonance when her contingent steps onto Fifth Avenue.
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