Amazon canceled its plans for building a new east coast headquarters in New York City. The decision came after Amazon received pushback from far-left activists and politicians in New York, including people like Democratic Socialist Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez.
The far left’s push to keep Amazon out of New York, denying new jobs and tax revenues to the local economy, is only the latest example of NIMBY politics, which strangle economic growth and harm minority communities.
From a purely states-rights perspective, it’s okay if New York doesn’t want Amazon to build there. They’re not discriminating by religion or any protected class; they’re just rejecting Amazon outright. As a city in our republic, that’s their right.
It’s the reasoning they’re using to reject Amazon that’s interesting because it reflects a growing trend on the left. NIMBYism, or “Not In My Back Yard,” occurs when homeowners, business owners, and others in the community claim some level of ownership over the entire community. They use that ownership to exclude anyone or anything they find personally offensive.
NIMBY-disposed people are particularly opposed to development, especially anything that turns a profit. It’s a cartoonish story of the evil land developer who comes in and ruins a beloved neighborhood.
In reality, though, the impacts of NIMBYism go the other way. Those pushing NIMBY politics are often out of touch elites who don’t want any contact with poor or disadvantaged people. That’s why you see wealthy people in Seattle and California killing affordable housing initiatives from the city.
In Los Angeles, NIMBY initiatives have choked off the ability of developers to build more housing. The housing crisis there has cut off poor and minority communities from access to higher paying jobs. They aren’t alone. In liberal Marin County, California, just across the bay from San Francisco, the fights have gotten racially charged:
“They say they want to maintain the roots and characteristics of our county,” said Omar Carrera, executive director of the nonprofit Canal Alliance. “But what they really are saying is that they want to maintain it as white and wealthy.”
Another activist noted of the NIMBY cohort, “Hillary Clinton is not going to force you to build an affordable housing development in your neighborhood. It’s very easy to go down and vote for her.” These blue state liberals are happy to vote for progressive policies on everyone else, but when it comes to everyone else, they want their white, wealthy, gated communities.”
Bloomberg Opinion columnist Noah Smith refers to this practice as the new redlining, a reference to how the government used regulations in the 20th century to segregate. And given the racially charged meetings and goals of the NIMBY advocates, it’s hard to disagree with him on that observation.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez started cheering Amazon’s departure from New York immediately, exclaiming: “Today was the day a group of dedicated, everyday New Yorkers & their neighbors defeated Amazon’s corporate greed, its worker exploitation, and the power of the richest man in the world.”
But the real greed seen here wasn’t from Amazon — it was a small, noisy contingent of NIMBY politicians and activists who are following the progressive lead of other liberal cities. When polled, 56% of New Yorkers overall approved of locating the Amazon HQ in New York. Support among minorities was much higher:
Minorities were the biggest Amazon boosters. Among black voters, 70 percent backed the deal while only 25 percent objected. Among Latinos, 81 percent supported Amazon while only 17 percent were opposed.
Contrary to liberal politicians’ claims, the activists agitating against Amazon aren’t standing up for minorities, workers, or anyone else. They’re doing the exact opposite, trying to wall off the city, so it continues to look how they want it.
Had Amazon constructed the new headquarters in New York, they’d have created 25,000 new jobs for the local economy, flooding the market with new buyers and economic demand. The Amazon jobs would have also been higher quality service and technology-based, which trend far greener than other positions.
Leftist activists are happy to talk about the “Green New Deal” and make vague promises of “building a better tomorrow.” But given the opportunity to do it in real life, New York leftists turned their backs on the very workers and minorities they pretend to care about.
Again, cities and communities have the right to make development decisions. But we need to start recognizing this NIMBYism for what it is: white liberal elites controlling the conversation and shutting out other voices. These policies may not be the overt racism that we witnessed with old-school redlining, but the effect is the same. It’s a form of structural racism and denies opportunity to the less powerful.
The critics of these NIMBY communities are right. It’s easy for them to talk about the need for a more inclusive society. But when push comes to shove, they have little interest in actually living next to anyone different. New York progressives just redlined a lot of people out of potential jobs — hardly anything to celebrate.
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