‘All of Us Should Be as Pissed Off as I Am’: 9/11 Widower Blasts NYC Mayor Over Ground Zero Ceremony

Giovanni Galante, whose wife Grace was killed in the 9/11 attacks, told Newsmax that Mayor Zohran Mamdani should stay away from the 25th anniversary commemoration — and he's furious that the mayor plans to attend anyway.

NEW YORK — A 9/11 widower who lost his wife in the terrorist attacks is demanding that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani skip this year’s 25th anniversary ceremony at Ground Zero, calling his potential attendance “disrespectful” and “an intrusion” on a sacred day of remembrance .

Giovanni Galante, whose wife Grace Catherine Galante was killed while working on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center’s North Tower, has become the public face of a growing movement to bar the mayor from the September 11 commemoration .

“All of us should be as pissed off as I am for him trying to even attend,” Galante said in an interview with Newsmax’s Finnerty program on September 7 . “I think it’s disrespectful to attend somewhere you’re not wanted” .

A Petition, a Headline, and a Dispute Over Numbers

Galante launched a Change.org petition in July 2026 calling on organizers to reconsider the mayor’s role in the anniversary ceremony . The petition argues that Mamdani’s political stances — including his reluctance to condemn the pro-Palestinian slogan “globalize the intifada” — disqualify him from a solemn event meant to honor the nearly 3,000 people killed on September 11, 2001 .

The petition has since garnered tens of thousands of signatures, though the numbers have been a source of controversy .

The New York Post ran a front-page headline in July claiming that “thousands of 9/11 families” wanted Mamdani banned from the ceremony — a claim that originated from Galante’s petition . But Galante himself admitted that no such list actually exists.

“We don’t have a list,” Galante told the independent newsletter Popular Information . He acknowledged that the reported figure of 300 family members was largely guesswork: “We all know each other, so … think about it. If you know 10 people and they give it to 10 more people they know that lost. That’s how we got the 300 number” .

Despite the disputed numbers, the story was picked up by conservative media outlets including Fox News and even briefly reported by CBS News, which later issued a retraction .

‘He’s the Worst Mayor We’ve Had in History’

Galante didn’t hold back in his criticism of Mamdani, questioning the mayor’s values and his associations.

“Regardless of his words, we know his father has written a book about us sympathizing with the terrorists,” Galante told Newsmax, referring to Mamdani’s father, Mahmood Mamdani, a Ugandan-born academic who has written critically about U.S. foreign policy .

“He’s hung around people that hate America and wished 9/11 on us,” Galante added . “He’s the worst mayor we’ve … had in history” .

Galante stressed that the annual ceremony is not a political event but a time for victims’ families and survivors to gather in prayer and remembrance.

“This is mostly for the victims and the survivors to come that day and pray and just have a remembrance of the day,” he said . “We don’t need him to sign a piece of paper … and give a pen to an attorney that kind of tried to help out anybody in al-Qaida” .

Trump Weighs In — But Won’t Be at Ground Zero

President Donald Trump has voiced support for the families opposing Mamdani’s attendance, telling reporters during a White House press conference that he “understood” why they were upset .

“The people having to do with—anybody having to do with 9/11 right now, on the victims’ side, and there’s a lot of them, they’re very unhappy with what’s going on in New York,” Trump said .

However, Trump himself will not be at the Ground Zero ceremony on September 11. According to reports, the president will attend a memorial service at the Pentagon instead, while Vice President JD Vance will represent the White House in New York .

The decision has sparked its own controversy. The New York Times reported that Trump had wanted to deliver remarks at the Ground Zero event — but organizers have banned speeches from politicians at the ceremony since 2012 . Trump denied the report, posting on Truth Social: “This is more Corrupt News, I’ve been to New York many times over the years, and no one ever speaks, it’s a ‘solemn ceremony!’” 

The Mayor Responds: ‘I Will Proudly Honor the Families’

For his part, Mayor Zohran Mamdani has made clear that he has no intention of staying away .

“I will proudly honor the families, the survivors, the first responders forever impacted by that horrific terror attack by standing alongside them at this year’s 9/11 commemoration, reaffirming that we will never forget the solemn day felt by all of us who call this city home and, frankly, by all of us who called this country home,” Mamdani said in a statement .

The 9/11 Memorial & Museum, which organizes the annual ceremony, noted that it has “intentionally worked to keep the commemoration free of politics. Government officials from across the political spectrum have attended the ceremony simply to bear witness” .

A History of Tension at Ground Zero

The controversy over Mamdani’s attendance is not the first time the 9/11 commemoration has been drawn into political debate. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who led the city during the 2001 attacks, has also publicly opposed Mamdani’s participation, accusing the mayor of supporting an “Islamic conspiracy” to control American institutions .

Giuliani’s own reputation has shifted dramatically since 2001 — he was once hailed as “America’s Mayor” for his leadership after the attacks, but his involvement in spreading false claims about the 2020 election has since tarnished that legacy .

The dispute reflects the ongoing emotional and political complexities surrounding milestone 9/11 commemorations in New York. For Galante and the families who support his petition, Ground Zero remains a sacred space that should be shielded from political figures they view with suspicion . For others, the annual ceremony has always been a time for unity — not exclusion.