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By Jenni Fink
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Bravo star Reza Farahan was shocked when Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral election in New York City and worries about what it means for the future.
Mamdani was sworn into office at midnight, following a campaign that upended New York City politics. Mamdani’s history with “globalize the intifada,” being a self-described “democratic socialist,” and his promises to make parts of New York City life free made him a lightning rod, including from reality television stars.
Farahan rose to fame in 2012 when Shahs of Sunset premiered and will be returning to people’s screens on The Valley: Persian Style at the end of the month. His family came to the United States from Iran during the revolution that toppled the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, in the late 1970s.
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Part of the Iranian revolution was fueled by economic disparities in the country and Ayatollah Khomeini, who rose to power after Pahlavi was ousted, promised free water, electricity and housing for the poor.
“[These young kids] were just so ambitious and wanting change. And he was promising them free this and free that,” Farahan told Newsweek. “And then when Zohran Mamdani was running in New York, all of my fears of like, oh, my God, he's promising people things he can't deliver on.”
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During the campaign, Mamdani promised free buses, no-cost childcare and government-run grocery stores as a means of combating affordability issues that are plaguing Americans. Mamdani wants to pay for it by collecting $10 billion in revenue from taxing businesses and wealthy New Yorkers. However, he’ll need approval from Governor Kathy Hochul to implement the new taxes. While the governor may be warming up to the idea, she hasn’t gotten on board yet, and raising taxes could be a political liability for Hochul’s own campaign.
Mamdani’s election was largely fueled by younger voters, capturing 78 percent of voters under 30 and 68 percent of voters between the ages of 30 and 44. His election also comes on the heels of widespread anti-Israel protests on college campuses in support of Palestinians.
Farahan said it “scares” him that young people are fighting for something they have “no idea” about. He called it “frightening” to watch what was happening to Jewish students during the protests and said he doesn’t feel pressure to speak out about the issue, but knows what happens if people stay silent.
“I feel like if you want to know anything about what happens when radical ideology goes left, talk to a friend from Iran and have them explain to you what can happen if you don't get involved," Farahan said.
Mamdani originally refused to condemn the use of the slogan “globalize the intifada,” but said over the summer that he would discourage the use of the phrase, according to the New York Times. After a protest erupted at a synagogue that rented space to an organization that helps Jews move to Israel and settlements in the West Bank, Mamdani said chants calling for the death of anyone would not be tolerated.
However, he ruffled feathers by criticizing the synagogue for allowing it to be used to “promote activities in violation of international law.”
As a kid, Farahan had nightmares he’d be sent back to Iran, and he cautioned young Americans who are supporting Mamdani and pushing for reform change that it doesn’t necessarily come without regrets. He said the young students and women who pushed for change during the Iranian revolution are “kicking themselves” because of what their country has become.
Farahan became an American citizen as an adult, one of the greatest accomplishments of his life, and something he attributes to being the reason he’s alive because he’s not allowed to be gay in Iran. Farahan’s been a vocal critic of the Iranian government and current culture, something that’s made him the source of backlash. In his upcoming book, Memoirs of a Gay Shah, Farahan said Americans who criticized him for pushing back on Iran may be taking their own freedom for granted.
“The next time you’re planning out the barbecue menu for your Fourth of July party, or planting a tiny flag in your planter to celebrate that day, take a moment to appreciate it from the point of view of an immigrant like me,” Farahan wrote in his book. “Becoming an American means gaining your independence remember that.”
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