Zohran Mamdani would receive less hate if his name was John Smith. The racism against him has been evident. Mamdani is fighting for New Yorkers. Mamdani’s primary goals for New Yorkers are to freeze rent, make buses free, make childcare free and make living in New York City affordable. New York City, specifically in the Manhattan area, is consistently ranked the most expensive city to live in the United States.

Due to Mamdani being Muslim, Republicans have consistently talked bad about him and his faith. Some online have suggested he is going to enforce sharia law on New Yorkers, with some thinking he has the power to do so or enforce it. The New York City mayor does not have that much power, and we do not know if Mamdani even follows sharia law, and we know his wife does not. 

People have also consistently been pronouncing his name wrong, whether deliberately or not. There have been white men with harder last names that have been pronounced correctly by the public. 

Of course, Mamdani’s policies come with flaws. Free buses may cause more overcrowding and, freezing rent can cause less housing supply (although Mamadani would like to build more housing to combat this). The fact is this though: we have not seen a mayor of this kind ever. Usually New York elects older men who do not actually help the city. Mamdani has a major initiative to make New York City better. The only people against him are either racist, or they think he was not fit to run. Mamdani was my top choice considering Andrew Cuomo has had multiple sexual assault allegations, and he put people with Covid-19 into nursing homes. Curtis Sliwa was definitely fit to run, but the majority of people on social media advocated for his capability to be a spokesperson for New York, not a politician. 

Mamdani, for many New Yorkers, was a breath of fresh air. He advocated against ICE agents abusing their power, and he has continuously fought alongside people facing oppression, not against them. Mamdani’s position in office will hopefully make New York City a better place to live and travel in.