My Hope for Mayor Mamdani

In Korea, hierarchy governs many relationships, and anyone with less experience than you in school, work, or field, is your person. Hubei. If you are higher than this person, then you are that person fairy back.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani is a good friend of mine from the Bronx High School of Science. I am his senior

I don’t know the 112th mayor of New York City from our alma mater. He graduated in 2010 and I graduated in 1986. I never met him in person. I’m old enough to be his mom. But on the inaugural stage, I saw his real mom, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Meera Nair, sitting behind my hubby and his wife, artist Rama Dhwaji. On the other side of the aisle were Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, Letitia James, Kathy Hochul and Bill de Blasio.

I sat under the stage on the west side of City Hall. You can tell I’m hosting the party because I’m listed as one of the 40 members of the inaugural committee. I didn’t do much work. Also in the audience were actors Richard Kind, Kal Penn, Susan Sarandon and John Turturro, as well as Muslim Girls website founder Amani Khatatbe.

It’s 20 degrees outside. Everyone was frozen. My husband and I wore gray flannel suits and cloth coats. Rookie mistake. We took apart a pair of Hothands and put them into leather gloves. We’d been waiting since 11am for the show to start around 1pm, and even though our fingers and toes were turning blue, we didn’t want to be anywhere else.

Why did I agree to serve on the inaugural committee? There were no tents, heaters, snacks, merchandise, and the logistics email said there were no blankets or umbrellas, so why did I show up in person? It can’t be because Mayor Mamdani is my friend. Our four-year high school has nearly 3,000 students. The Bronx Science Center has been in existence for more than 75 years. Statistically speaking, I have too many hubbies. No one should like someone just because they went to your old school.

Instead, I’m here because tens of thousands of people have packed the seven blocks south of City Hall. New York needs a smart, courageous and innovative leader who wants to make significant structural changes in public education, health care, housing and transportation. It would be great if new people weren’t afraid of party politics and were willing to ask why things can’t be different.