Controversy Surrounds Mayor Mamdani’s New Appointees
Before taking office, Mayor Mamdani’s newly appointed chief capital officer faced criticism for disparaging remarks about liberal white women made on his now-deleted X account. This comes on the heels of another aide being criticized for extremist statements.
Afua Atta-Mensah, the city’s new equity officer, had previously referred to white people in derogatory terms and made comments about taxation, while frequently using the term “comrade” in her posts. She also shared contentious statements like, “There is no moderate path to black liberation.”
In appointing her, Mamdani expressed his trust in Atta-Mensah to propel racial equity within City Hall. However, the Young Republicans Club of New York uncovered her troubling past online shortly after she deactivated her account, less than a week into her new role.
Her deleted account coincided with scrutiny aimed at another appointee, tenant advocate Thea Weaver, who faced backlash for her calls to “seize private property” and labeled homeownership as a “weapon of white supremacy.”
Atta-Mensah seemed aware of her controversial online presence, as her tweets included at least three mentions disparaging liberal white women. In one instance, she responded to a post stating, “We don’t talk about white liberal racism enough,” with, “Facts! It would need to be a series of loooooonnnnnnnnggggg conversations.”
In another instance, she reposted a comment that implied certain individuals felt like police figures, specifically mentioning “white women in a non-profit organization.”
The duration of her problematic posts extends back to at least 2020, all of which she deleted just prior to her appointment. One post notably compared white women to Amy Cooper, labeled the “Central Park Karen” after an infamous incident in 2020. “Many of you are the Amy Coopers to Black women in nonprofits every day,” the post stated, and Atta-Mensah’s response was akin to an affirmation.
Further, she appeared to express agreement with sentiments about taxing “white meat,” even posting, “Tax white meat!!!” accompanied by applause emojis.
Mamdani’s office clarified that they hadn’t instructed appointees to erase social media, and Atta-Mensah’s background includes work on mayoral campaigns following involvement in social justice organizations.
In her appointment announcement, Mamdani praised Atta-Mensah for her commitment to represent New Yorkers often overlooked in political discussions.
Additionally, Mamdani publicly supported Weaver despite recent controversies. Weaver’s past social media comments included statements like, “Police are just people and the state is sanctioning Mr. W’s murder,” along with remarks labeling “private property of all kinds” as a “weapon of white supremacy.” She also encouraged the election of more communists to execute her radical policies.
City Hall has yet to respond to inquiries regarding Atta-Mensah’s past remarks. Critics have accused the administration of attempting to obscure her earlier positions to circumvent another backlash.
Stefano Forte, president of the Young Republicans Club of New York, suggested that the administration was being more cautious following Weaver’s situation, but failed to sufficiently erase Atta-Mensah’s online history. Forte comments that “anti-white racism appears to be a characteristic within Mayor Mamdani’s close circle rather than an isolated issue,” concluding that the context of Atta-Mensah’s statements reflects the administration’s broader approach in New York.
