AOC Asks How 9/11 Victims ‘Died in Alphabetical Order’ During Memorial Reading
NEW YORK — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Mayor Zohran Mamdani drew complaints Saturday after they were seen laughing through portions of the annual reading of the names at the National September 11 Memorial, including a moment in which Ocasio-Cortez asked how the victims had “died in alphabetical order.”
Witnesses said the two officials leaned toward each other throughout the ceremony and shared several visible laughs. The exchange that most unsettled nearby attendees, they said, came after Ocasio-Cortez turned to the mayor and asked how it was possible that so many people had died in A-to-Z sequence.
A person seated behind them said Mamdani covered his mouth and shook for several seconds.
Ocasio-Cortez later described the morning as enjoyable.
“We had such a great time,” she said. “But you’d think they would serve some popcorn and candy like they do at the movies.”
Memorial organizers read the names of those killed in the 2001 attacks in alphabetical order, a practice used at the site for years to provide a fixed, neutral sequence. Officials said the format is logistical, not chronological.
People sitting close to the mayor said the laughter was not the only disruption. Several asked him to stop saying “Deserved it” after names were read.
One attendee said the phrase was audible at least a dozen times before an usher spoke to an aide. The aide, according to that account, whispered to Mamdani, after which the comments became quieter but did not stop entirely.
A spokesman for the mayor said Mamdani “attended in a spirit of remembrance” and “rejects any characterization that he mocked the dead.” The spokesman did not address the specific phrase.
Ocasio-Cortez’s office said the congresswoman “meant no disrespect” and that her question about the order of names was “a sincere attempt to understand the program.” The office did not comment on the popcorn remark.
Family members who were present called the behavior “incompatible with the purpose of the day.” One relative of a victim said the alphabetical reading exists so no name is treated as a punch line.
“They are not listed that way because that is how they died,” the relative said. “They are listed that way so the living can get through the list without turning it into a show.”
City Hall said the mayor would continue to attend future anniversary events. No change to seating arrangements was announced.
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