Zohran Mamdani says NYC must invest in neighborhoods like Flatbush and protect immigrant families

Editor’s note: This interview has been condensed and some responses paraphrased for length and formatting.

As a tenant organizer and New York State Assembly member, Zohran Mamdani has spent years working alongside immigrant communities in Brooklyn, including Haitian New Yorkers. In an interview with The Haitian Times, the mayoral candidate, who currently represents Assembly District 36 in Astoria, Queens, discussed how those experiences have shaped his views on justice, housing, and city governance. 

Mamdani emphasized that his campaign is about redistributing power and investing in communities like Flatbush that have long faced systemic disinvestment.

The Haitian Times: What are your top three priorities?

Zohran Mamdani: This campaign is built around the promise to make New York City more affordable—especially for the working class who have built and sustained this city, and yet are being priced out.

From the beginning, I’ve laid out three opening commitments that we would make. The first one was to freeze the rent for over two million rent-stabilized tenants, who earn a median income of $60,000 and have faced hike after hike under the Adams administration. The second one is to transform our buses—the slowest in the country—by making them fast and free. The third is to deliver universal childcare for families with kids from six weeks to five years old, building on the success of universal pre-K and the glimpse of 3-K before Eric Adams snatched it away from us.

THT: How have your interactions been like with the Haitian community in New York City?

Mamdani:
I’ve been proud to work with Haitian leaders like Assemblywoman Farah Souffrant Forrest. The Haitian community represents both the promise of freedom and the reality of betrayal—TPS  being one example. I’ve seen firsthand how Little Haiti has been impacted by slow buses and underfunded childcare. When I speak about the necessity for making our buses fast and free, it’s also something born out of the lessons of Little Haiti and Brooklyn at large, which has the second slowest buses in New York City. Another core thing that I have learned that matters to Haitian New Yorkers and to all New Yorkers is public safety. And that is something that every New Yorker deserves to feel. It’s the bare minimum,

Q: What would you say to people who worry that free buses will be less safe or filled with unhoused people?

Zohran Mamdani:

We heard those concerns during our fare-free bus pilot—but they didn’t come true. In fact, we saw a nearly 39% drop in assaults on bus operators. Our pilot shows buses improved safety, reduced car use and can help the 1 in 5 New Yorkers who can’t afford the fare.

THT: What would you do to improve sanitation services in neighborhoods like Flatbush that are still struggling post-pandemic?

Mamdani:
Unlike Mayor Adams, I would not threaten layoffs or remove garbage cans from corners. Every New Yorker deserves a clean city, and that starts with fully funding sanitation. It’s also essential for fighting the city’s rat problem, which affects neighborhoods across the five boroughs.

THT: How would you protect Haitian and other immigrant New Yorkers from ICE raids?

Mamdani:
As mayor, I would enforce existing laws that bar ICE from entering schools, hospitals, and city property without a judicial warrant. I’d also create a commission to ensure full compliance across city agencies and contractors, and expand the Haitian Response Initiative within the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. We must lead with courage, not cowardice.

THT: Anything else you’d like to say to the Haitian community?
Mamdani:
I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations. I understand what it’s like to be seen as suspect by the state. Haitian New Yorkers deserve safety, stability, and a city that sees their humanity. I’d fight for legal representation for all facing ICE detention, because it increases their chance of staying with their families by 11 times.

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