The Emerging Big Apple: Feminist Geography and Struggles over Urban Space in Mamdani’s New York

Abstract

This essay examines the political platform of Zohran Mamdani, New York City mayor-elect, through the lens of contemporary debates in feminist geography. Engaging critically with Leslie Kern’s Feminist City, it explores how traditional urban design reproduces inequalities of gender, class, and race by centering on the figure of a productive male “ideal user.” The essay analyzes key proposals associated with Mamdani’s administration—including rent freezes, free public transportation, and the socialization of care work—as tools for dismantling the material barriers that shape the everyday lives of women and gender-diverse people. It concludes that these initiatives represent a step toward an intersectional model of urbanism that prioritizes social reproduction and the right to housing over the logic of the real estate market.