Resist the racist left’s Mamdani trap

Back in 2021, in my book “Woke, Inc.,” I argued that the modern left’s obsession with race unnecessarily divides Americans by pitting us against one another: If race is paramount, the only solution to racism is more racism.

Mercifully, after the election of President Donald Trump and some key Supreme Court rulings, the peak of woke insanity appears to be behind us.

Calling someone “racist” no longer shuts down important policy debates.

So why is an online fringe of the “right” developing a fresh obsession with race that mirrors the worst impulses of the woke left?

Take a look at the most-viewed responses to my recent social media post featuring a photo of my wife Apoorva, our two sons Karthik and Arjun, and myself — dressed in red, white, and blue — at an Independence Day parade.

 “They wear our identity like a skin suit,” went one.

“We didn’t invite you. Get the fuk out of our home, RamaAnchorBaby,” was another.

“GO HOME NON-WHITE INVADER . . . GO HOME!” — and so on.

They’re part of a trend that’s picking up steam, most recently with the emergence of Zohran Mamdani, the self-described socialist who just won the Democratic primary for New York City mayor.

Conservatives like me have sounded the alarm about Mamdani’s wacky socialist agenda for what used to be America’s marquee metropolis.

Indeed, the public deserves to hear clearheaded arguments for why his policies will bankrupt New York City and make the city’s dire housing shortage even worse.

The real problem with Mamdani isn’t his race or religion. It’s his anti-capitalist worldview and his policies that risk destroying our nation’s largest city.

But some supposed “conservatives” are pouncing on Mamdani not for his political views, but for his ethnicity.

“These are not Americans,” one prominent influencer claimed on X, posting side-by-side photos of Mamdani and me.

“When conservatives attack Zohran Mamdani for being a foreigner, I just want them to keep the same energy with Vivek Ramaswamy and Usha Vance,” another posted.

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These fools are imitating the woke progressives — embracing the idea that the color of your skin is more important than the essence of your beliefs.

They abandon the foundational American creed that one’s character and civic commitments matter more than one’s race or ancestry.

The left’s focus on race claims to serve social justice; those pushing online right-wing racism claim to serve national cohesion.

But both fail to achieve even their stated goals.

Every time conservatives engage in racial grievance politics, our side unhelpfully validates the left’s worldview.

It’s a trap — and with Mamdani, it’s working.

Progressives are now calling on high-profile Republicans to “denounce” the racism (and amplify the controversy), or else stay silent and be labeled complicit.

That shifts the conversation from Mamdani’s radical policies to a pointless debate about race.

Mission accomplished for the left.

I understand the temptation: For months, the media has trumpeted Mamdani’s heritage, gushing that he could be New York’s “first Muslim mayor” or “first mayor of South Asian descent.”

Mamdani himself has pledged to target “whiter neighborhoods” with higher taxes and supports race-based reparations for black New Yorkers.

When you’ve been falsely smeared as a racist for believing in merit-based systems, it’s tempting to say “Fine, two can play this game.”

But that’s not principled opposition; it’s letting your opponents set the terms of engagement.

Mamdani could be black, white, Asian, Christian, Muslim or Andrew Jackson’s long-lost twin — it wouldn’t matter.

His policies are unhinged and will hurt everyone in New York, including the very citizens he purports to help.

That’s the argument conservatives should make  — vocally and unapologetically. It’s not about who Mamdani is, but what he stands for.

I was the target of racially charged attacks during my presidential run. I expected it from the left — they’ve been calling successful conservatives “coconuts” and “Uncle Toms” for years.

Adopting the same racial essentialist thinking only lends credence to the left’s charges. It’s wokeness with a fake new conservative veneer.

Real conservatives must reject this approach.

We believe in the Jeffersonian ideal that “all men are created equal.”

We take Martin Luther King, Jr. at his word, sharing his dream of a country where all are judged on the content of their character, not the color of their skin.

We fought to end affirmative action and DEI not because we want to discriminate differently, but because we want to end discrimination.

This isn’t naïve idealism; it’s the only path to a unified nation.

When we reduce people to racial categories, we are, by definition, dividing people into groups, focusing on our differences and setting us against one another.

Our country’s strength isn’t really our diversity, but what unites us across that diversity — a commitment to meritocracy, free speech, open debate and resolution of disagreements at the ballot box.

That’s what e pluribus unum is about. We’re all Americans first.

Vivek Ramaswamy is an American entrepreneur, bestselling author and a candidate for governor of Ohio.