At the Internationalist Standpoint’s third conference document on “Identity Politics and Its Role in the Crisis of the Left,” one of the biggest challenges facing today’s Left was clearly identified: the growing fragmentation of movements caused by the dominance of identity-based politics. The document pointed out that while identity politics originally came from genuine struggles for recognition and visibility by oppressed groups, under modern neoliberalism this has changed. Instead of challenging the system, identity politics often function as a way to contain opposition—a kind of “safe zone” that doesn’t threaten capitalist relations of power and production.
In this context, the political strategy of Zohran Mamdani, the newly elected Mayor of New York City, stands out as a real and practical response to this crisis. His approach brings class back to the center of political debate, offering an alternative to the kind of politics that focuses only on representation and symbolic inclusion, without questioning the economic system itself.
The Limits of Identity Politics and the Colonial Legacy
The way identity politics operate today is not only a product of neoliberal multiculturalism—it also carries the imprint of colonialism. In his book Define and Rule: Native as Political Identity (2012), Mahmood Mamdani shows how colonial powers used a strategy of “defining to rule.” They divided the people they colonized by creating fixed ethnic, religious, and cultural categories. In this way, they turned natural social differences into rigid political identities that helped them control society.
This method replaced broad political subjects—like citizens, workers, or peasants—with narrow administrative labels such as “natives” and “non-natives.” Instead of uniting people around common interests and struggles, colonial rule pushed them to fight over definitions and boundaries.
The same logic operates in today’s neoliberal capitalism. Instead of uniting people around demands for income redistribution and collective control over resources and means of production, mainstream left-wing politics are reduced to questions of representation and visibility. Who gets to speak, who gets to be seen, and who gets to belong often take the place of deeper questions—like who owns what, who produces, and who profits.
Politics Beyond Identity
Zohran Mamdani’s political approach can be seen as a living, practical continuation of his father Mahmood Mamdani’s critique. Although Z. Mamdani is often described as a young, Muslim, African-origin, immigrant politician, his campaigns did not center on those identities. Instead, he built his politics around common, material interests that unite working-class people across communities.
In his grassroots organizing across Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, Mamdani focused on concrete, everyday issues: rent control and affordable housing, free public transport, universal childcare, and better public services. By doing this, he shifted the discussion from symbolic representation to real living conditions — from “who speaks for whom” to “how do we all live better.”
Mamdani’s message also gives new meaning to the fight against racism. Rather than treating anti-racism as a purely moral or cultural stance, he connects it directly to the economic system. His message punch-line was that inequality and exclusion are not just the result of prejudice, but of the system that depends on exploitation and division.
In this way, Mamdani puts into practice a deeply decolonial lesson: to challenge the categories through which power divides and controls us, and to rebuild solidarity on the basis of shared class interests and collective struggle.
The 99% Against the 1%: Politics as Common Interest
When Zohran Mamdani says, “Whatever our identities may be, our interests are shared,” he’s echoing and updating the spirit of the Occupy Wall Street slogan — “the 99% versus the 1%.” His message doesn’t ignore identity; it simply refuses to treat it as the main line dividing people politically.
By putting economic issues at the center, Mamdani has been able to build alliances that cut across communities — bringing together Black, Latino, immigrant, and working-class white residents around shared struggles. Rent, childcare, transport, wages — these are issues that affect people across all backgrounds.
This kind of politics breaks down the walls that identity politics often reinforces. Instead of asking who we are, Mamdani’s approach asks what do we need — and how can we win it together. It’s a move from symbolic politics to collective struggle, from individual recognition to common interest — the essence of class-based solidarity.
Reconstructing Class and Redefining the Left
At the Internationalist Standpoint conference, one key concern stood out: the Left has, to a large extent, lost its collective class subject — the sense of the working class as a united political force. Zohran Mamdani’s project offers a step toward rebuilding that unity. His politics don’t deny or erase identities, but they also don’t treat them as the starting point. Instead, class becomes the thread that connects the different forms of oppression people experience under capitalism.
This approach echoes Antonio Gramsci’s idea of hegemony: real leadership on the Left doesn’t come from symbolic representation or identity-based visibility. It comes from the ability to organize, inspire, and change the material conditions of people’s lives.
In that sense, Mamdani can be seen as a kind of “modern prince” in Gramsci’s meaning of the term — not a heroic individual, but a political figure who helps forge new alliances, raise consciousness, and build collective power through struggle. His example points to a Left that can once again speak to the majority, not through cultural branding, but through shared material interests and a vision of social transformation.
Critiques and Limitations
Of course, Mamdani’s strategy also faces clear limits. In a global city like New York — marked by deep social divisions, gentrification, and a complex web of institutions — achieving real systemic change is an uphill battle. Radical, class-based demands are essential for mobilizing support among working people, but they aren’t enough on their own. To turn these demands into victories, there needs to be an organized mass movement capable of resisting the inevitable backlash from the ruling class — and a leadership with both a strategy and a vision to lead that fight.
It is already clear that the Democratic Party is seeking to constrain and ultimately control Mamdani. The establishment will push for “moderation” in order to “maintain unity”. It is argued that New York is “different” and that a class-based appeal will not work elsewhere. In fact the opposite is the case: a class appeal is necessary everywhere to build a real opposition to the rule of the millionaire class and to fight Trump. To fulfil the hopes of his supporters and voters Mamdani must be prepared to break with the Democratic Party and to call for a new party. Where New York has led, other cities will follow.
At the same time, identity politics continues to have real significance for communities that have faced centuries of oppression and exclusion. It can’t simply be brushed aside. What’s needed is a consistent and patient effort to connect those fighting around identity issues with broader class-based politics — to show that struggles for dignity and recognition are strongest when linked to struggles for living standards and, in the end, political power.
Real liberation doesn’t come from redefining who we are — it comes from transforming how we live.
Toward a Politics Beyond Identity
Zohran Mamdani put into action the key idea developed by his father, Mahmood Mamdani: to break down the categories through which power divides people, and to rebuild solidarity on the basis of shared material needs and class interests.
The New York experience carries an important lesson for the Left. Identity politics can only play a liberating role when they are connected to class struggle — when the fight for recognition is linked to the fight for living conditions and collective control over resources.
By shifting the focus from who represents us to how we change the conditions we live in, the Mamdani campaign pointed towards a way out of the fragmentation that has weakened the Left for decades. This victory outlined a possible road forward: one that rebuilds unity, grounds itself in everyday material struggles, and revives the Left as a transformative force in the 21st century.
