In New York, Zohran Mamdani and Emmanuel Grégoire appear together to defend access to housing and the fight against global warming

We met in the parking lot of a brand new social housing building in a neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York (United States). The operation which takes place on Friday September 18 is organized to the millimeter by the teams of the city’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani. “The tenant will tell you about their excitement about moving in. You’ll chat with him for a bit, then we’ll go to the 6th floor to see another tenant, a single mother of two children. You will offer him a coffee pot”says, in a rapid tone, Mr. Mamdani’s intractable press secretary, while waiting for the latter to arrive. The mayors of Paris, Amsterdam and Manchester (United Kingdom) – who listened to him with an amused air – were asked to wear a t-shirt with the logo “Mayors Welcome” hot pink, the color of New York’s leading moving company.

Massed between the cars, the cabinet members say hello and identify themselves by their respective mayors when the mayor of New York, elected in November 2025, arrives, in an SUV with tinted windows. Without ever losing his smile, the 34-year-old Democrat, “so happy to be there”greets his European counterparts and continues with his introductory remarks.

“As we prepare to welcome Urban20 (U20, diplomatic summit of cities, mirroring the G20)what better way to celebrate than by helping a few New Yorkers move into their new homes and celebrating the $22 billion (around 19.2 billion euros) that our city invests in the creation of affordable housing? It’s a challenge we all face and we’re excited to tackle it together”declares the elected official, before rushing into the elevator to present two model apartments which still smell of paint.

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