MAGA Meltdown Over Zohran Mamdani’s Viral Video Eating with Hands: A Cultural Moment Twisted into Political Theater.

MAGA Meltdown Over Zohran Mamdani’s Viral Video Eating with Hands: A Cultural Moment Twisted into Political Theater.

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A resurfaced 2023 video of New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani eating biryani with his hands has ignited a wave of backlash from prominent MAGA figures, turning a simple cultural act into a flashpoint of political and racial tension.

The video, originally part of an interview with Media, shows Mamdani casually eating a traditional South Asian meal with his hands while discussing global justice and Palestinian rights.

The clip was amplified by right-wing social media accounts and quickly drew condemnation from figures like Congressman Brandon Gill, who called Mamdani “uncivilized” and told him to “go back to the Third World.”

The criticism didn’t stop there.

Conservative commentator Dinesh D’Souza and his daughter Danielle D’Souza Gill, who is married to Rep. Gill, also weighed in, with Danielle stating she “always used a fork” despite her Indian heritage.

It’s worth noting that eating with hands is a regular and respected practice in Indian culture — the very culture D’Souza himself comes from.

Other MAGA influencers, including Laura Loomer and Charlie Kirk, accused Mamdani of performative politics and mocked his cultural background.

Yet the outrage reveals more about the critics than the candidate.

Eating with hands is a respected and ancient tradition practiced across South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and even parts of Europe.

Americans themselves regularly eat burgers, pizza, tacos, chicken wings, ribs, and doughnuts with their hands — without controversy.

The backlash against Mamdani, who recently defeated Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary, appears less about etiquette and more about discomfort with his identity and rising political influence.

Cultural historians note that eating with one’s hands is not only hygienic but also deeply symbolic.

In Ayurvedic tradition, each finger represents an element — earth, water, fire, air, and space — and eating with your hands is believed to enhance digestion and mindfulness according to research

Even in ancient Greece and Rome, utensils were rare.

According to historians interviewed for this report, hands were the original tools of civilization.

The idea that forks equal refinement is a colonial myth that ignores the richness of other traditions.

In a city as diverse as New York — home to thousands of restaurants representing cultures from around the world — this kind of outrage rings hollow.

Advocates say when political criticism crosses into cultural shaming and racial mockery, it must be called out for what it is: ignorance masquerading as outrage.

Yetunde B reporting for Yeyetunde’s Blog.

MAGA Meltdown Over Zohran Mamdani’s 2023 Viral Video Eating with Hands: A Cultural Moment Twisted into Political Theater. pic.twitter.com/oEEw7y374O

— Yeyetunde’s Blog (@YeyetundeB) July 8, 2025

Here’s a video of you eating dog food with your bare hands https://t.co/sbZ1ktVo5n pic.twitter.com/MdkJAPqwJp

— evan loves worf (@esjesjesj) June 30, 2025

Images / Social Media / Footage: Laura Loomer eating dog food with her hands — captured on video. Visuals powered by V Gundam X.