Can you imagine a government that offered services that actually worked? A government that didn't give you that familiar round-around, wherein calling up a helpline didn't feel like a Kafkaesque doom loop?
Such a scenario feels unrealistic for many of us. We have been dulled to the brokenness of government agencies. But in New York City, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is about to try to prove that government can actually serve its people. Abby Vesoulis reports:
While the administration’s goals include free city buses, rent freezes, and city-run grocery stores, they also want clean and safe public transit that runs on schedule, and the imposition of immediate consequences for landlords, businesses, and agencies that fail to abide by code.
“There is often low trust in government because our processes are just too hard to navigate,” Elle Bisgaard-Church, Mamdani’s chief of staff in the assembly, and soon in his mayoral office, tells Mother Jones. “It’s really important to us that there are fewer barriers for New Yorkers to get what they need from the government, which is supposed to serve them.”
So what's their approach? As Abby writes, the incoming administration is committed to treating constituents' concerns as urgent and solvable. To authentically listen to people, as Mamdani did during his 12-hour listening session, where ordinary New Yorkers vented to their soon-to-be mayor about everything from illegal price gouging to road construction.
"He has made clear to us that we’re all going to be part of the effort of listening to New Yorkers," Mamdani’s incoming first deputy mayor, Dean Fuleihan, said.
I don't know about you. But for me, it is equal parts inspiring and refreshing to see a government simply talking like this. You can read more of Abby's conversation with Mamdani's team here.
—Inae Oh
