‘A fairer city’

To the editor:

Dorothy lives in a black and white Kansas. She wants a better life for herself and her family. In Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg’s song, “Over the Rainbow” from “The Wizard of Oz,” Judy Garland sings “Dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.” 

Millions of New Yorkers are struggling to survive in our global city of capital that has enormous income and wealth inequality. One part of this affordability crisis is driven by the moguls who control real estate, Wall Street and high-tech conglomerations. These power brokers are aghast that a 33-year-old democratic socialist is the Democratic nominee for mayor.

His affordability agenda has excited many New Yorkers and enlarged the party’s base in the Democratic primary. Zohran Mamdani has pledged to freeze rents on one million stabilized apartments and to fight for the dream of a fairer city. This includes universal childcare, an expansion of social welfare programs, free buses and increased taxes on the wealthy and corporations.

Jay Jacobs, head of the state Democratic Party, as well as Charles Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries, senior leaders of the party in the state and minority leaders in Congress, have for the last three months declined to endorse Mamdani. They object to his democratic socialism and strong criticism of Israel.

Given the dire threat to the rule of law and the headlong rush into authoritarianism by Trump, his MAGA Republican Party and his allies, it’s disturbing that Jacobs, Schumer and Jeffries are tone deaf to changes in their party’s voters. Among Democrats, a number of recent polls have shown overwhelming support for increasing taxes on the wealthy and on corporations (Governor Hochul take note), growing support for democratic socialism, and a marked shift from supporting Israel given its human rights abuses in Gaza and in the other occupied territories.

Howard Elterman