"With the victory of Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, in New York City's mayoral election last week, socialism is on the march. At least, that's the assertion of the National Republican Congressional Committee, the campaign arm of the House Republicans. "This is the future House Democrats want, and your city could be next," an N.R.C.C. ad blared the day after Mamdani won. "Stop socialism. Stop Democrats.""
"Moreover, the platform he campaigned on- free bus rides, universal child care, building more affordable housing units, a freeze on rents for apartments that are rent-stabilized, opening a handful of city-run groceries with the aim of offering cheaper fare than privately run stores-is squarely focussed on the cost of living in a city where, according to Zillow, the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment is approaching four thousand dollars citywide."
"To secure for the workers by hand or by brain the full fruits of their industry and the most equitable distribution thereof that may be possible upon the basis of the common ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange, and the best obtainable system of popular administration and control of each industry or service. These words were taken from Clause IV of the Party's constitution, which the Fabian socialist Sidney Webb drafted in 1917."
Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, won New York City's mayoral election. Republican operatives portrayed the win as evidence of Democrats embracing socialism, running ads warning cities could be next. Mamdani's platform centers on free bus rides, universal child care, more affordable housing, rent freezes for rent-stabilized apartments and city-run grocery stores to offer cheaper food, targeting high local housing and child care costs. Those measures are pragmatic cost-of-living responses rather than public ownership of industry. Historic socialist commitments, such as Clause IV of Britain's Labour Party, advocated common ownership of production, distribution and exchange. Separately, Donald Trump has been buying stakes in private companies and ordering them around.
Read at The New Yorker
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]