Zohran Mamdani

[Hygro]

And it’s not like it’s fixed here either. The race categories are changing all the time. They tacked “Latino” in ethnicity in the white parens a couple months ago, confusing all the times last year one might have guessed “Native American” or “black”. I believe they had a more indigenous option a while back, they had a lot more options even. It’s forever growing, shrinking and changing.

But the constant is that it’s ultimately anchored to a white gaze from the racial politics of America’s founding, even as grass roots distinctions emerge.

 

[Ordnael]

You have it easy
I am a post colonial born cisgendered hetero normative European "classical" Latino of African ascendency, as my father was born there, in Angola, but my passport will just call me Portuguese...the hubris of the system!

 

[Voidwalkin]

This race conversation is ridiculous. Yes on first pass he looks like he was gaming it. But then his reply was rock solid obvious, it’s a complex identity.

Understand that “black” is a skin color for most of the world’s local race systems.

In Central America, being Asian (indian etc) with dark skin, being Latino with dark skin, being African or Arab or whatever with dark skin is black. Being the same with light skin is white. Being the same with medium skin is brown.

My wife came here and looked around, had some papers to check, and was like, I guess I’m black? I was like, well, probably not? The checkboxes are 100% based on American legacy racism and don’t make any sense to outsiders let alone many insiders.

All correct

An 18 year old son of an academic is 100% going to assert his identity in a “disruptive” way on a college app, not to game the system though it would be acknowledged its place, but to proudly challenge the status quo “we are African and I am not white therefore I am African American take that the system”

There is discontent with that system, and large numbers of people want to stick it to it. However, there is a widespread perception that there are double standards, entirely dependent on group membership, that are influential in public tolerance of the extent one can stick it to the system, and that is something of an issue regarding ability of progressives to sell policy to poor dumb country white guys.

The core of Trump may really just be the aggression in his defiance. If I think on it, Mamdani woulda been better off saying "fudge yeah I gamed it, fudge that ****", including the swears. Not with progressives, ofc, but with the wider electorate. No apologies. Blur the lines, get gangster with it. Full demagogue defiance. Offer policy decisively without the attached ideology and it'll sell like crazy.

You kinda touched on it with that "and I'm not white" bit. If a white dude with African nationality had done the same thing it, perception would perhaps be different. Even if it wouldn't - the perception is that such a person would be hammered by progressives, but, Zohran gets a pass, because, well, not white. I am 100% sure, living in the country amongst poor dumb factory workers, that the system of different standards for different ethnic groups is an issue causing a major ruckus.

If you don't think progressives can sell policy to that demo anyway, I guess it's nothing. If you think they need to - well, yeah, the interaction of progressive ideology with Mamdani's personal action and later apologizing is just gonna cause irritation.

 

[danjuno]

The Republican running against him literally went on Fox and defended him while mocking Adams and Cuomo for dodging the issues.

 

[Hygro]

You have it easy
I am a post colonial born cisgendered hetero normative European "classical" Latino of African ascendency, as my father was born there, in Angola, but my passport will just call me Portuguese...the hubris of the system!

You have it easy, you get to be Portuguese. I get to be afraid of ICE every day

 

[Voidwalkin]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1943658186629632422

A lot to unpack here...

Go on, then.

 

[Arwon]

This race conversation is ridiculous. Yes on first pass he looks like he was gaming it. But then his reply was rock solid obvious, it’s a complex identity.

Understand that “black” is a skin color for most of the world’s local race systems.

In Central America, being Asian (indian etc) with dark skin, being Latino with dark skin, being African or Arab or whatever with dark skin is black. Being the same with light skin is white. Being the same with medium skin is brown.

My wife came here and looked around, had some papers to check, and was like, I guess I’m black? I was like, well, probably not? The checkboxes are 100% based on American legacy racism and don’t make any sense to outsiders let alone many insiders.

An 18 year old son of an academic is 100% going to assert his identity in a “disruptive” way on a college app, not to game the system though it would be acknowledged its place, but to proudly challenge the status quo “we are African and I am not white therefore I am African American take that the system”

It is certainly the case that Aboriginal people, who are "black" in Australia (though actual skin tone varies widely and isn't central to self or community identification), will fit horribly in the 5-race US Census categorisation.

 

[Samson]

Apparently he is into hip hop

Zohran Mamdani just showed up at the RTJ + WuTangClan concert in NewYork. [Someones] friends, who are backstage handling guest lists, are absolutely losing their minds over this dude. He and his wife are not acting like VIPs. They are in the pit, directly in front, rapping every word.

Spoiler The gig :

 

[Hygro]

He's a real one.

 

[Klaus Hergersheimer]

Apparently he is into hip hop

Zohran Mamdani just showed up at the RTJ + WuTangClan concert in NewYork. [Someones] friends, who are backstage handling guest lists, are absolutely losing their minds over this dude. He and his wife are not acting like VIPs. They are in the pit, directly in front, rapping every word.

Spoiler The gig :

View attachment 737374

It's a shame he's advocating for torture.

 

[danjuno]

?????

 

[Klaus Hergersheimer]

?????

 

[Voidwalkin]

Apparently he is into hip hop

Zohran Mamdani just showed up at the RTJ + WuTangClan concert in NewYork. [Someones] friends, who are backstage handling guest lists, are absolutely losing their minds over this dude. He and his wife are not acting like VIPs. They are in the pit, directly in front, rapping every word.

Spoiler The gig :

View attachment 737374

He briefly tried his hand at a musical career in that genre.

 

[danjuno]

More of a folk guy myself, but hey, different folks, different strokes.

 

[danjuno]

Mamdani raises over $1M in latest NYC fundraising haul, drowning out Cuomo, Adams​

New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani (D) raked in over $1 million in campaign funding in recent weeks, out-earning both former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams.


Mamdani raised just over $1 million through a pool of small donations from his grassroots campaign efforts between July 12 and Aug. 18, according to the city’s campaign finance board.


The Democratic nominee’s average donor contributed $121 with almost an equal split of contributions from both in and outside of state.


Cuomo’s donations totaled $541,301 during the same period, with an average contribution size of $646. Some of the funding was pulled from his former state campaign account.


Adams, who is running as an independent, fundraised $425,181 with an average donation of $770.




Mamdani’s dominance in the campaign funding realm has also translated into a clear lead in the polls.


Early August surveys show him leading the five-person field race by double digits.


A poll from Sienna College found Mamdani ahead of his challengers by almost 20 points, while a poll average from Decision Desk HQ’s (DDHQ) projects him besting Cuomo, who is also running as an independent, by 13 points.


Mamdani’s policies promoting a rent freeze, city run grocery stores and free childcare has resonated with voters in recent weeks, with some dubbing him the “champion” of working class voters.


If elected, he’d become New York City’s second democratic socialist mayor.

Looking good so far. Unlike the primary, NYC still uses FPTP for general election, so Adams and Cuomo are tripping over each other. The question is whether Wall Street follows tries to bail out Cuomo closer to election day or if they have already written the election off and will just try to lobby the council to block his proposals when he's in office.