“As socialists, the working class is at the heart of our politics,” says Zohran Mamdani, New York State Assembly member in the Thirty-sixth District in Queens, as the plates keep arriving. I’m at Sami’s Kebab House in Astoria at Mamdani’s suggestion, talking with him about his next big move: running for mayor of New York City.
I’m not surprised that the assemblyman suggested this place, rather than some corporate purveyor of austere salads; Mamdani comes from an immigrant background and is committed to thinking big. Ordering, he opts for abundance: mantu dumplings, borani banjan (Afghan-style eggplant), and salmon kebab. Mamdani is well-liked here, so we’re also given plenty we didn’t order, including bolani kachalu (much like a samosa) and firnee, a dessert custard sprinkled with pistachios.
I’ve interviewed Mamdani before, and his record of left-wing legislating is impressive. But this is different. His mayoral campaign could have huge implications — for New York City, for the socialist movement, and progressive politics as a whole.
Granted, Mamdani’s chances of winning the mayoralty aren’t great. It’s rare for anyone, let alone a socialist, to become mayor without first holding a city- or borough-wide office. But the race could foreground desperately needed working-class policies in a city whose residents are suffering multiple overlapping crises around affordable housing, childcare, public transportation, and much more. And Mamdani has been a stalwart supporter for justice in Palestine at a time of immense pressure for elected officials like him to keep their mouths shut on the ongoing genocide there.
His campaign could shift ideas about what’s politically possible in the country’s largest city, carving out…
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Auteur: Liza Featherstone
