Overview
- Cea Weaver said in a 2021 podcast that "white, middle-class homeowners are a huge problem" for renter organizing and argued organizers must "undermine the institution of homeownership."
- A newly viral clip shows Weaver describing rent control as a strategic first step toward "full social housing" that would weaken the speculative value of real estate and strike a blow to the industry.
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani named Weaver director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants on Jan. 1 by executive order as part of reviving the office, with early actions tied to oversight of problem landlords including the Pinnacle bankruptcy context.
- Criticism intensified after resurfaced posts in which Weaver called homeownership a "weapon of white supremacy," drawing rebukes from figures such as former NYC Mayor Eric Adams.
- Mamdani has defended the appointment, Weaver has called some past remarks regrettable, and one report cites an X post from Civil Rights Division chief Harmeet Dhillon saying her office is paying close attention.