Add The California Post on Google If you think Zohran Mamdani’s victory is simply a New York story, think again.
LA should be paying attention because the same political movement has been gaining strength here for years.
It may speak with a calmer voice and present itself with polished messaging, but the underlying ideology deserves the same scrutiny.
Don’t mistake a soft-spoken demeanor for moderation. LA City Councilwoman Nithya Raman represents the California expression of the same radical socialism that fuels figures like Mamdani.
The Mamdani movement did not emerge overnight. It is the result of years of ideological activism taking root in our schools, universities, nonprofit organizations and political institutions. A divided America is a weakened America, and our adversaries understand that.
According to the US Department of Education’s foreign funding disclosures, American universities have reported tens of billions of dollars in foreign funding since reporting requirements began, including more than $1 billion in disclosed funding from Qatar in 2025 alone.
Congress has increased scrutiny of these disclosures, but foreign money continues to shape institutions responsible for educating America’s future leaders. We should not be surprised when those ideas eventually find their way into our politics.
This is about far more than socialism. It is about a worldview that increasingly casts America as the villain; capitalism as inherently oppressive; and Israel, America’s closest democratic ally in the Middle East, as uniquely illegitimate.
As an Iranian immigrant, I have seen this movie before.
My family fled Iran after the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The revolution was sold as justice, equality and liberation. Many educated people believed the radicals could be controlled.
They were wrong. Once extremist ideology captured the institutions, it captured the country.
History teaches that societies rarely abandon freedom all at once. It happens gradually.
Institutions change. Language changes. Cultural norms shift. People become afraid to speak honestly. By the time the danger is obvious, the foundation has already eroded.
That is why what is happening today should concern Americans from New York to Los Angeles.
The Democratic Socialists AGAINST (not “of”) America (DSA) has normalized rhetoric that would have been politically unthinkable just a few years ago. It has elevated activists who openly embrace revolutionary politics; excuse or minimize extremist slogans; and portray America and Israel as the primary sources of injustice in the world.
Ultimately, that means blaming the Jews for all the problems facing our country.
Just look at some of the candidates elected alongside Mamdani.
Congressional nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier participated in the Columbia University encampment movement, co-founded Columbia University Apartheid Divest, and has publicly spoken about dismantling Western civilization. Would-be state legislator Aber Kawas has publicly argued that America’s policies and systems helped create the conditions that led to the Sept.11 attacks.
Perhaps most alarming is the explosion of the “New Hatred” that has accompanied this movement.
Across college campuses and city streets, many Jewish Americans have watched anti-Jewish rhetoric become increasingly normalized under the banner of activism.
Legitimate criticism of Israeli government policy is one thing. Harassing Jewish students, celebrating terrorist organizations, intimidating Jewish businesses, or treating Zionism as grounds for exclusion is something entirely different. Those actions should concern every American, regardless of political affiliation.
This is not simply a Jewish issue. It is an American issue.
A society that tolerates hatred against one minority while excusing it as political activism weakens the protections that safeguard every minority. Once intimidation replaces debate and ideological conformity replaces open discussion, everyone eventually pays the price.
As the US prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, we should ask ourselves a difficult question: How did a nation founded on liberty, opportunity and individual responsibility become so vulnerable to movements that reject those very principles?
For decades, many Americans were busy building careers and raising families while activists focused on schools, universities, local government and cultural institutions. Today, the results are visible in our elections, our classrooms, and increasingly, our city halls.
The next political battle will not be fought only in New York. It will be fought in Los Angeles. It will be fought in school board meetings, city council chambers, neighborhood councils and voting booths.
The American Dream is not self-sustaining. Every generation must defend it.
Rather than planning an exit strategy, we should become more engaged than ever before.
Attend local meetings. Support civic education. Teach American history and the Constitution. Vote in every election, especially local ones.
Speak clearly against antisemitism and every form of bigotry. Challenge misinformation. Defend free debate. Protect the institutions that preserve liberty before they are too weakened to do so themselves.
New York should serve as a warning, not a blueprint. Los Angeles still has a choice.
Shirin Yadegar is the founder of LA Mom Magazine.
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