America’s Other F-Word: Fear Of Socialism In New York’s Political Landscape

Editor’s note: We recently published an article that discussed this same topic with relation to how the takeover by socialism of a society is a quiet and insidious process, where constituents are led to believe that they can be protected from the vicissitudes of life, including various injustices and painful times, through the socialist system of governance.

“America’s Other F-Word: Still Scared of Socialism — Even Now?”,

The below article explores how the American fear of socialism — especially in the context of New York politics and the candidacy of Zohran Mamdani — echoes the absurdities, contradictions, and informal systems I grew up with in the late Soviet Union.

The piece weaves memoir and political analysis, from po blatu (favor networks that quietly ruled Soviet life) to the way “socialism” is now used as a culture-war slur by both ex-Soviet immigrants in Brooklyn and Trump-aligned Republicans. I draw on my experience as a bilingual journalist who reported for Voice of America during its shutdown under Trump’s second term and connect that moment — and the American right’s growing authoritarian tilt — with patterns I once recognized as uniquely Soviet.

At its core, this essay is about language, memory, and media distortion — how “socialism” has become a placeholder for fear, and how Americans often misidentify what truly threatens their democracy.

America’s Other F-Word:

Still Scared of Socialism Even Now?

By Nina Vishneva

Every summer, my parents got me into a famous children’s camp by the Black Sea — po blatu. The phrase means: through connections, favors, unofficial channels. I remember hearing it as a little girl and thinking it sounded magical — like something from “Old Man Khottabych”, a Soviet children’s book I loved.

But there was no magic. Po blatu meant my father — head of a Moscow printing house — had to bribe certain important people to get me into a place most kids could only dream of. His currency was books: brand-new titles, straight off the press. These books were never read. Important people simply filled the shelves of their stenka — the giant display cabinets in every Party member’s home — to show off bindings, not knowledge.

At school events, we’d wave flags and shout, “Thank you, Communist Party, for our happy childhood!” We said it out loud. But all Soviets knew the real story was written in silence — in backdoor deals and favors exchanged.

I moved to New York in the early 2000s. For the past twenty years, I’ve worked as a journalist — covering U.S. politics, protests, presidential campaigns, and American democracy in motion. I’ve reported in two languages and from both sides of the world. But lately, I’ve been hearing echoes — strange, familiar ones — from my Soviet past.

These days, I hear Americans whispering about socialism — afraid it might suddenly take hold here, in a single city, because of a single mayoral candidate.

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They’re talking about Zohran Mamdani — a Democratic city council member from Queens now running for mayor of New York. Some see his progressive platform — focused on housing, transit, and economic justice — and panic. To them, that’s code for socialism. And socialism, they’ve been told, is the beginning of the end.

But what are they really afraid of?

There are two groups especially anxious.

The first: former Soviets. Babushkas & dedushkas who once thrived under po blatu and now live comfortably in Brooklyn — often on government benefits. Most of these programs — Social Security, Medicare, rent subsidies, and Medicaid-covered home attendants — were built or expanded by the Democratic Party. And yet, many in this group rail against Democrats. They call them levaki (lefties), believing they’re bringing back the socialism they claim to have escaped — even as they rely on its offerings in their American lives.

The second group: self-proclaimed patriots. Red-hatted Republicans who think socialism is just an accent, a beard, or a brown skin tone away from invading their way of life. They heard Trump call Mamdani a “communist,” and now believe NYC is turning into a second USSR.
The funny thing is, Trump himself once toured the real Soviet Union — in 1987 with Ivana, his then-wife who spoke Russian. Maybe he didn’t like what he saw. But what makes him so sure Mamdani is building a little USSR in NYC? Free school lunches? A budget plan? Rent stabilization?

If only Americans truly understood what Soviet socialism was — and what it wasn’t.

To be clear, corruption isn’t unique to socialism. What’s the real difference between po blatu and, say, Mayor Eric Adams’ alleged favors in exchange for Turkish campaign money? A federal judge dropped the corruption case against him in April. For many Soviet-born immigrants, that’s a familiar ending — the kind of wink-and-nod outcome they remember all too well.

In fact, many of those denouncing socialism today are unknowingly living by its rules — leaning on connections, sidestepping official channels, and admiring “strong leaders” who protect their own. What they fear isn’t socialism. It’s losing the privilege of access — of knowing someone, skipping the line, getting ahead.

Meanwhile, the word “socialism” keeps getting thrown around like a slur — emptied of meaning. It’s used to shut down conversation, flatten nuance, and distract from what’s actually happening in America — where truth is increasingly treated as an inconvenience.

I’ve been watching this shift not just as a citizen, but as a reporter. For years, I worked for Voice of America — a newsroom created to bring factual, independent journalism to people living under authoritarian regimes. I reported in Russian, trying to reach those who could no longer access uncensored news inside Russia. My audience included Russians, Ukrainians, exiles, refugees, and American-born Russian speakers — all searching for clarity in a time of rising propaganda.

But then came Trump’s second term. And VOA was shut down — by the president of the United States. For me, it was déjà vu.
I had already ended all collaboration with Russian media after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Now, I had been silenced again — in the country I trusted to protect the freedom I came here to find.

Here’s the truth: most Americans wouldn’t recognize socialism if it offered them free childcare, canceled their medical debt, and sent their kids to summer camp by the Black Sea.

They’re far more comfortable with the idea of punishment than possibility. They’ll cheer for deportation buses, ankle monitors, and detention camps — even “Alligator Alcatraz”– style prisons in swamps — long before they support universal pre-K or rent subsidies.

I’ve seen this playbook before. Silencing journalists, punishing dissent, rewarding loyalty over integrity — this isn’t about ideology. It’s about control.

It’s authoritarianism in a new suit. And that is the world we all should be afraid of.

Banner Image: Mosaic on a building in downtown Berlin. Image Credit – Ilse Orsel