Mamdani Drops Spanish-Language Video Telling Migrants To Keep The Door Shut On ICE, Sparking Cries Of ‘Sedition’

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani posted a Spanish-language video on Oct. 23 walking residents through what to do if immigration agents come to their door or stop them on the street, and Republicans reacted within hours. The clip went up on Instagram and X, according to Latin Times, and reaffirms the city’s sanctuary policies.

Mamdani told viewers that ICE needs a judicial warrant signed by a judge to enter a home, and that without one they can keep the door closed. In Mediaite’s translation, he tells them to look for the words “United States District Court” and a judge’s signature, and to say, “I do not consent to your entry.” If agents stop someone on the street, he says to ask, “Am I free to go?” He also urges viewers to speak with a lawyer before signing anything or making decisions about their immigration case.

Latin Times adds that the mayor says agents may misrepresent themselves or show official-looking papers that are not a court order, that everyone has the right to remain silent regardless of status, and that bystanders may film agents in public as long as they do not obstruct an arrest.

🚨 WTF?! Zohran Mamdani just put out a video IN SPANISH to COACH illegals how to evade ICE

This guy is OPENLY assisting invaders who are committing FEDERAL CRIMES

He needs his security clearance revoked IMMEDIATELY. pic.twitter.com/WjOVTHifDY

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) October 23, 2026

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) called it “unbelievable” and wrote that the mayor “is openly helping illegal aliens evade @ICEgov and undermine the law,” per Mediaite. Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY) said the mayor was using taxpayer resources to tell people in Spanish how to dodge accountability. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) wrote: “At no point in this video is anyone urged to abide by the laws of the United States.” Commentator DC_Draino called the video “sedition,” and Sortor, whose post is above, demanded the mayor’s “security clearance” be revoked; none of the coverage says Mamdani holds one.

Immigrant advocacy groups, which Latin Times does not name, praised the release, especially its delivery in Spanish. Neither outlet reports a statement from the mayor’s office beyond the video itself, and neither reports a response from the Department of Homeland Security.

It is not Mamdani’s first such video. In December 2025, as mayor-elect, he posted a similar rundown of residents’ rights during ICE encounters, saying agents can lie and that people may film them. Then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said at the time that Mamdani, if he were mayor, “could be violating the Constitution” by advising people how to evade law enforcement.

The fight with Washington has sharpened since. After an ICE officer shot a Dominican man during an arrest attempt in the Bronx’s Marble Hill on Oct. 8, Mamdani called ICE “rotten to its core” and said he had spent two hours on the phone with President Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin trying to resolve the case, according to a syndicated news report. Mullin replied that Mamdani wanted DHS to walk away, and DHS said the man has ties to the Trinitarios gang, a claim the reporting does not independently verify. As we reported, a judge later barred that man’s deportation.

The city has also won a round in court. As we noted on Oct. 16, a judge ruled that the federal government cannot force New York City to help ICE, leaving its sanctuary laws standing.