Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams warned Monday about a rise in antisemitism and “anti-Americanism” nationwide, saying a newly launched New York City digital coin could help fund education and awareness programs while also promoting the city as a cryptocurrency center.
“There’s a wave of anti-Americanism that’s sweeping not only our Ivy League college campuses, but in our inner cities,” Adams said while discussing the initiative on “Mornings with Maria.”
Adams explained that proceeds from the coin would fund three initiatives: antisemitism awareness and education programs, cryptocurrency and blockchain education for New York City students and scholarships for talented youth from underserved communities.
“[With] the money that is generated from this coin, we’re going to zero in on ‘how do we stop this massive increase of antisemitism across our country and across the globe?’ and, ‘how do we deal with the increase in anti-Americanism?’” he said.
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He added that blockchain technology offers a way to fund those efforts without increasing taxes.
“The money that’s raised is going to go to those nonprofits like Combat Antisemitism, going into the college funds, such as the historical HBCUs, so this is money that, without raising taxes, you can use to fight the issues, social issues in our city.”
Adams’ comments come as New York City undergoes a political transition following the inauguration of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose administration has already started reversing several of Adams’ policies.
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Among those policies was an executive order linking the city’s definition of antisemitism to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) standard, which defines antisemitism as “hatred toward Jews.”
Mamdani rescinded the policy on Jan. 1 — his first day in office.
Despite the new administration’s changes, Adams said he remains hopeful about the city’s future.
“I still believe that this city is the financial capital of the globe, and we’re going to see how blockchain technology can actually improve government, not fight against government.”
