representation is not revolution

they keep trying to sell us victory. every time a brown face steps up to a podium, every time a muslim name appears on a ballot, every time someone with “progressive” vibes wins a seat, they throw a party. we’re supposed to clap. supposed to believe we’re getting somewhere. that maybe this time, this system that was built to crush us is finally making space for us. but nah, bruh. that ain’t what’s happening. that’s never been what’s happening.

zorhan mamdani is running for mayor in new york city. he’s a muslim. he’s a democrat. and to a lot of folks, especially right now, he looks like hope. people are out here framing his run as a win. saying, finally, a muslim mayor. finally, a voice for the voiceless. in the middle of genocide, with israel slaughtering palestinians and the u.s. government fueling it, this man’s candidacy is being held up like a symbol. and symbols can be powerful. but they can also be distractions.

this isn't just about zorhan. this is about what we keep falling for. the system knows how tired we are. how desperate we are. so it gives us these little moments that feel like change. puts a fresh face on the same machine. and people eat that shit up. but let me say this clearly. zorhan isn't the revolution. zorhan isn't liberation. zorhan is a candidate, running inside an electoral system that is built to contain resistance and sterilize rage.

last week i read a piece on Substack that said "zorhan mamdani is a zionist". the piece had some really excellent points, and i restacked several of them. but that was the whole title. and while i don’t necessarily agree with that framing, i get why the author went there. i’ve watched zorhan speak, seen him make statements against the israeli regime. i’ve seen him stand against zionism in public. so calling him a zionist, to me, doesn’t hold up. but at the same time, there’s something more complicated going on. this man speaks out against genocide, yes, but he’s still moving thru the democratic party. he’s still working the angles, still navigating power. and that means he’s gotta play the game. a little pandering here, a little pandering there.

and the game is fucked. we’ve seen this before. we’ve seen what happens when we put all our hopes into one person. zorhan’s rise looks just like aoc’s did. remember her? remember the energy? she came in hot. she said the right shit. she wore that “tax the rich” dress and everyone went wild. she had people believing again. even folks who gave up on the state were peeking back in like, “maybe this one’s different.” but then the cracks showed. she voted to fund the iron dome. she caved on police budgets. she danced around accountability when palestinian lives were on the line. and every time she did, people made excuses for her. said she had to. said she was being "strategic". 😂 gtfoh...fuck strategic. our people are dying. and this ain’t a game of chess. this is genocide. this is occupation. this is surveillance, prison, war, famine, and police. this is the same goddamn empire that has been killing us slowly and loudly for generations. and yet, we keep treating it like it can be reformed. like if we just elect the right brown face or the right muslim voice, we can soften the blow. make the cage a little more comfortable.

it’s a setup. and it’s worked before. the empire loves a face it can parade. obama proved that. kamala proved that. eric adams proved that. even condoleezza rice. u think it’s an accident that so many of our “firsts” are also the same ones who go the hardest for empire? u think it’s a coincidence that the first black president bombed seven countries? that the first black vice president laughed about locking people up for weed? that the first muslim mayor might end up apologizing for war crimes with a carefully worded tweet?

representation is not liberation. i don’t give a fuck how good their speeches are. if you’re operating inside the machine, you’re serving it. maybe with more compassion, maybe with better language, but you’re still oiled up and spinning the same gears. and it’s not just them. it’s us. it’s how we respond. how quick we are to believe again. how fast we are to put all our sacred, hard-earned energy into one person. that shit is dangerous.

i say “sacred” on purpose. because that energy - our revolutionary energy - is fucking sacred. it comes from struggle. from grief. from nights without sleep and marches in the rain and prison visits and funerals. it comes from knowing the world wants us dead and still choosing to fight. that energy deserves better than a campaign poster. deserves better than some twitter post from a politician trying to sound radical while keeping donors happy. deserves better than “at least he said something.”

who gives a fuck what he said. seriously. people keep sending me links. “but look what zorhan tweeted!” “he said ‘ceasefire’!” cool. so did biden. words don’t mean shit without risk. without action. without breaking ranks. and zorhan doesn't seem to be breaking ranks. time will tell.

and before anyone twists my words, let me be real. i don’t dislike zorhan. this isn't personal. i don’t think he’s the devil. i just know how the devil works. and the devil is empire. the devil is electoralism. the devil is the belief that if we just get the “right” person inside the building, they’ll open the doors for us. newsflash. they won’t. they can’t. the building wasn’t made for us. the building was made to watch us die quietly.

i get it tho. i’ve done it too. i’ve put hope in people. there’s a muslim brother named butch ware, we’ve crossed paths enough to build a rhythm, who’s running for governor in california. he says the most radical shit out of just about anyone i have ever heard running for office. so i’ve given him more trust than i usually give any "politician". not because he’s running. not because of a platform. but because i know his heart, his intelligence, his sincerity. the authenticity of his background tells me that he is truly for the people. and even then, i’m watching. even then, i don’t trust the system he’s trying to work thru. because that’s the part people forget. u can love someone, believe in them, respect them, and still know the system might chew them up. or use them. or both.

trust is earned. and ngl, my trust is tired. my trust is burnt the fuck out. my trust has seen too many broken promises, too many watered-down bills, too many statements that sound good and mean nothing. so nah, i’m not clapping for zorhan. i’m not clapping for any politician trying to save me from inside a system built to bury me. do not try and save me. grab a brick, watch my back, de-arrest me, be my accomplice.

but the crazy part is that most people don’t even know what revolution is. they think it’s a new mayor. a new slogan. a new type of representation. they think if the people in charge look different, then the system must be different. they think change comes from permission. from ballots. from offices. but that ain’t revolution. that’s branding.

revolution is a big "fuck u". revolution is mutual aid. revolution is abolishing the police, not reforming their training. revolution is defunding the military, not making a brown general. revolution is land back. is free palestine. is tearing down every institution that was built on genocide, slavery, occupation, and rape. revolution is making new shit. new ways to live. new ways to heal. new ways to survive without begging for scraps.

and we don’t get that from campaigns. we get that from the streets. from care work. from education. from collective defense. from loving each other so hard the state can’t break us. from organizing beyond the ballot box. from refusing to let the empire seduce us with fake victories and pretty speeches.

let zorhan run. let him tweet. let him get endorsements. let him win if that’s what’s gonna happen. but don’t let yourself get played. don’t confuse his face with your freedom. don’t confuse his faith with your future. don’t put your fire into someone else’s career.

we’ve got work to do. real work. dirty work. heartbreaking and hopeful work. and that work doesn’t require permission, or a mayor. it doesn’t require a vote.

what it does require is clarity. courage. and the ability to look the system in the face and say, “i see thru u.” what scares me the most about symbolic representation , zorhan, aoc, obama, any of them, isn’t even the individuals. it’s how it reshapes us. how it pulls people off the battlefield and into the bleachers. it seduces us into believing that our role in revolution is to cheer for someone else. it tricks us into thinking we can vote our way out of genocide.

and that right there is liberalism. it’s the belief that the system can be reformed, that power can be reasoned with, that justice is a matter of patience and the right paperwork. liberalism comforts. it tells u not to riot, not to burn, not to disrupt. it tells u to write letters and wait your turn. it says the best we can do is tweak the empire so it kills more politely.

the more we buy into representation as revolution, the more we get dragged into that liberal logic. people start mimicking the state’s language. instead of screaming “free palestine,” we start saying “permanent ceasefire.” instead of demanding abolition, we talk about training reforms. instead of defunding police, we start asking for more community engagement. we lower the volume of our demands to fit within the empire’s comfort zone.

representation teaches us to identify with the state. and once that happens, we stop resisting it. we start thinking like managers instead of fighters. we start prioritizing optics over impact. we start defending the same institutions we once swore to tear down. just look at how many self-proclaimed radicals are now running interference for politicians who fund war, fund cops, fund surveillance. that shift didn’t happen by accident. it happened because they got too close to power and forgot who they were.

when we invest all our revolutionary energy into electoral politics, we shrink our imagination. we forget what we’re capable of. we start doubting our own ability to change shit without help from the state. and the moment we doubt that, we’re fucked. because if u don’t believe in the power of collective action, if u don’t believe in your people, then all you’re left with is waiting for the next “good” candidate.

that’s the liberal trap. it’s not just about voting. it’s about dependency. it’s about looking upward for change instead of building it right here with each other. it turns our power into spectatorship. and then it calls us crazy when we scream for more than representation. when we demand the whole damn system come down.

liberalism will always offer just enough progress to calm the streets. and if we take that bait, we lose the plot. because our work is to liberate. and that shit doesn’t happen thru representation.

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please, don't fall for it. put your energy into the fire, not the water that might put it out. trust who u trust, do what your heart tells u. but stay dangerous while u do it.

and don't forget, fuck 12.