

Gabfest Reads | The Four Years That Changed New York City Forever
10 snips Aug 16, 2025
Jonathan Mahler, a staff writer for the New York Times Magazine and author of The Gods of New York, dives into the transformative years of Ed Koch's mayoralty. He explores the rise of socioeconomic disparities and social unrest, including the deep-seated racial tensions highlighted by the Yusuf Hawkins tragedy. Mahler connects past political landscapes with today's mayoral race, reflecting on the enduring legacy of leadership decisions on issues like affordable housing and the ongoing fight for racial justice in New York City.
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Four Years That Remade New York
- Mahler frames 1986–1990 as the pivot when New York morphed from a working-class city into extreme wealth and entrenched poverty.
- He argues this period concentrated social crises and racial flashpoints that birthed the modern city.
Yusuf Hawkins' Fatal Visit To Bensonhurst
- Yusuf Hawkins was a Black teenager chased and murdered by a white mob in Bensonhurst after looking at a used car with friends.
- Mahler uses Hawkins's funeral as the book's prologue and political turning point in the 1989 mayoral race.
From Urban Collapse To Wall Street Rebirth
- The 1970s left New York hollowed out by deindustrialization, arson, and collapsing services, creating a precarious cityscape.
- Reagan-era tax cuts and Wall Street deregulation then remade the city's economy in the 1980s around finance and real estate.