This essay is part of a series in which writers reflect on Zohran Mamdani’s inauguration as the mayor of New York City.  Illustration by Stuart Davis Come January, New York City will be led by an immigrant—and, in a series of firsts, by a Muslim Indian American from Uganda. This kind of representation is meaningful in and of itself for many New Yorkers who hail from elsewhere, “especially when immigrant communities are being grabbed off the streets,” as Ana María Archila of the Working Families Party told The New York Times. Muslims in the city watched with a particular “giddy optimism,” as Meher Ahmad summarized her own feelings in the Times, as well as a degree of apprehension about the backlash that might follow. But as the new mayor takes office, the bigger question is not what he symbolizes for immigrant communities but what benefits he might deliver for them if he can realize his vision of an affordable city. Immigrants are more likely than other New Yorkers to be rent burdened and make up over half …