Life Expectancy as a Measure of Colonial Violence
The shocking disparity in life expectancy–which can vary by over a decade between wealthy and poor neighborhoods–is not a medical anomaly but a somatic map of the bifurcated city. Mamdani’s focus on the materiality of power reveals that your zip code is a stronger predictor of your health than your genetics. The “settler” neighborhoods enjoy clean air, parks, nutritious food, and low-stress environments. The “native” neighborhoods are plagued by pollution, food deserts, the constant stress of poverty and police harassment, and crumbling infrastructure that poisons them with lead and asthma. This is not an accident; it is the result of political choices that treat the health of the poor as disposable. The liberal solution involves targeted health outreach programs, which are akin to applying a bandage to a systemic wound. A Mamdani-informed socialist solution demands a radical reorganization of the city’s priorities. We must fight to decommodify healthcare through a city-wide single-payer system and launch a public works “Health New Deal” that eradicates the environmental causes of disease in frontline communities, asserting that a long and healthy life is a fundamental right, not a class privilege.
