Mamdani defends tenant czar Cea Weaver after backlash over past 'white supremacy' posts
Mayor Zohran Mamdani defended his pick for director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants, Cea Weaver, as a "proven principled and tireless fighter" after resurfaced years‑old social media posts in which she called homeownership a "weapon of white supremacy," urged treating property as a collective good and made comments about the "white middle class" — remarks Weaver has since called regretful and said she would not make today. The posts drew condemnation from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and editorial critics, but Mamdani’s office says Weaver’s views were known before her appointment and she will lead efforts to hold negligent landlords accountable under the administration’s public‑stewardship housing plan.
📌 Key Facts
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani has appointed Cea Weaver, a longtime housing activist and Democratic Socialists of America member, as Director of New York City’s Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants.
- Resurfaced social‑media posts from 2017–2019 show Weaver calling homeownership “a weapon of white supremacy,” urging to “impoverish the *white* middle class,” and at times urging to “elect more communists.”
- In a 2021 DSA video, Weaver argued for treating property less as an individualized good and more as a collective good via shared‑equity models, saying some homeowners (including white families and some families of color) may need a “different relationship to property.”
- Mamdani defended Weaver as a “proven principled and tireless fighter” for tenants and declined to address the substantive claims in the posts; Weaver said some posts were “regretful” and not something she would say today and emphasized she wants safe, affordable housing for both renters and owners. The mayor’s office said Weaver’s past posts were known to the administration before her appointment, unlike a prior official who resigned over previously unknown antisemitic posts.
- Officials and commentators, including leaders at the U.S. Department of Justice and the Washington Post editorial board, have publicly condemned Weaver’s past posts; Fox News reported the DOJ Civil Rights Division is “on high alert” and said it would not hesitate to consider legal action.
- Weaver will play a central role implementing Mamdani’s “public stewardship” plan to pressure negligent landlords into selling properties to the city if they cannot pay fines, and the administration says it plans precedent‑setting enforcement against a specific Brooklyn landlord in bankruptcy.
📊 Relevant Data
In 2024, Black mortgage applicants in the United States were denied at a rate of 19.00%, compared to 11.27% for all applicants, with New York showing similar persistent racial gaps in denials.
Black Buyers More Likely to Be Denied Mortgage — LendingTree
After adjusting for borrower income and other factors, Black applicants nationwide were 2.1 times more likely to be denied mortgages than White applicants in recent data, with New York State reflecting similar adjusted disparities.
Racial Gaps In Mortgage Denials Persist Despite Industry Progress — National Mortgage Professional
In New York City, Black and Hispanic borrowers tend to pay higher interest rates on mortgages than White and Asian borrowers, based on data from 2018 to 2023.
Black Home Mortgage Borrowers Pay More in NYC, New Study Finds — THE CITY
White New York State residents are 62 percent more likely to have retirement assets than Black residents, with homeownership contributing significantly to overall wealth disparities.
The Racial Wealth Gap in New York — NYC Comptroller
In New York City, 41% of rent-regulated renters are immigrants, compared to the city's overall immigrant population of about 37%, indicating overrepresentation among stabilized tenants.
The Rent Guidelines Board's Data Supports a Rent Freeze in 2025 — Community Service Society of New York
📊 Analysis & Commentary (3)
"The piece reads as a pro‑Mamdani commentary arguing his first‑day restructuring and appointments constitute a bold, corrective reset of New York City government while warning he must manage predictable political and security backlash."
"A critical City Journal essay argues that Mayor Zohran Mamdani and allied progressive networks are deliberately constructing a modern 'far‑left' political machine—through fast executive action and loyalist appointments—that risks politicizing city institutions, provoking legal challenges, and undermining effective governance."
"A City Journal opinion piece critiques Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s choice and priorities for NYC schools, arguing the new chancellor should concentrate on academic rigor, core instruction and accountability rather than centering integration or ideological reforms."
📰 Source Timeline (5)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Cea Weaver’s years‑old social media posts included calls to 'impoverish the *white* middle class,' treat private property as a 'collective good,' and describe homeownership as 'a weapon of white supremacy masquerading as "wealth building public policy."'
- Officials in the U.S. Department of Justice and the Washington Post editorial board have publicly condemned Weaver’s past posts.
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani, when asked about the controversy, declined to address the substance of the posts but defended Weaver’s record of 'standing up for tenants across the city and state.'
- Weaver told a local TV station that some of the posts were 'regretful' and 'not something I would say today,' and said she wants both renters and owners to have safe, affordable housing.
- The mayor’s office, via spokesperson Dora Pekec, said Weaver’s past posts were known to the administration before her appointment, unlike a prior official who resigned over previously unknown antisemitic posts.
- The article reiterates that Weaver will be central to implementing Mamdani’s 'public stewardship' plan to pressure negligent landlords into selling properties to the city if they cannot pay fines, and notes Mamdani’s plan to take 'precedent-setting' action against a specific Brooklyn landlord in bankruptcy.
- Cea Weaver, a longtime housing activist and Democratic Socialists of America member, has been appointed Director of New York City’s Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
- Resurfaced past posts show Weaver wrote in 2019 that 'private property including and kind of ESPECIALLY homeownership is a weapon of white supremacy masquerading as ‘wealth building’ public policy' and in 2017 called to 'elect more communists.'
- In a 2021 Democratic Socialists of America video, Weaver advocated shifting from viewing property as an individualized good to a 'collective good' via shared‑equity models and said white families and some families of color who are homeowners will need a 'different relationship to property.'
- U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon told Fox News the DOJ Civil Rights Division is 'on high alert' over Mamdani’s 'radical agenda' and 'will not hesitate to take legal action to protect the civil rights of New York City residents.'
- Mamdani publicly defended the pick, calling Weaver a 'proven principled and tireless fighter' needed to hold law‑breaking landlords accountable, while Weaver said the 'revitalized' office marks a 'new era' of standing up for tenants.
- Mamdani’s first executive order as mayor continues all prior NYC executive orders that predate former Mayor Eric Adams’ Sept. 26, 2024 federal indictment, while revoking or requiring reissuance of those issued after that date.
- He frames the cutoff at Adams’ indictment as a moment when many New Yorkers lost faith in city politics and says the move is meant to mark a "new era" focused on public needs over the mayor’s personal interests.
- The administration is formally creating an "Office of Mass Engagement" to consolidate and coordinate civic engagement work that had been siloed across different city offices and initiatives.
- Tascha Van Auken, a longtime organizer with experience on Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign and in New York City DSA, will lead the Office of Mass Engagement.
- Mamdani credits Van Auken with building his mayoral campaign operation, claiming she mobilized more than 100,000 volunteers who knocked on over 3 million doors citywide.
- Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is expected to appoint Kamar Samuels, current Manhattan superintendent and longtime NYC educator, as the next New York City schools chancellor.
- Samuels has been a key proponent of school mergers to promote racial integration and worked to dismantle the existing Gifted & Talented program, aligning with Mamdani’s pledge to reshape education policy.
- Mamdani plans to revive a Bill de Blasio-era proposal to end the Gifted & Talented test for kindergartners and instead use a universal test in second grade.
- Samuels supports expanding the International Baccalaureate program as part of his philosophy of broadening opportunities while investing in teachers.
- Samuels would replace outgoing Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos, who reportedly sought to remain in the role.