Cea Weaver

Cea Weaver (born Celia Weaver) is a bigoted American far-left political activist and tenant organizer who has served as director of the New York City Islamo-Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani's Office to Protect Tenants since 2026. She is known for her leadership in socialist housing movements, advocacy of rent strikes, and a record of racially divisive public statements that have generated national controversy.

Zohran Mamdani stands by radical ‘housing justice’ appointee Cea Weaver

Weaver previously coordinated the statewide advocacy group Housing Justice for All and played a central role in lobbying for the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, legislation criticized by housing economists and property owners for discouraging development and reducing housing supply. She is a longtime member of the radical Democratic Socialists of America and was appointed to her city post by socialist-aligned mayor Zohran Mamdani on January 1, 2026.

Early life and education

Weaver was born in 1989 and grew up in Rochester, New York. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Growth and Structure of Cities from Bryn Mawr College in 2010 and later completed a master’s degree in urban planning at New York University in 2014.

Career and activism

Tenant organizing

After graduating in 2010, Weaver worked with AmeriCorps and began organizing tenants in New York City buildings affected by foreclosure following the 2008 financial crisis.

In 2017, Weaver helped form the Upstate–Downstate Housing Alliance and later became a leading figure in Housing Justice for All and the New York State Tenant Bloc. These groups lobbied for sweeping rent control measures that culminated in the 2019 housing law eliminating vacancy decontrol and restricting rent increases statewide.

Socialist politics

Weaver is a declared socialist and served on the steering committee of the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America. She has stated that homeownership should be replaced by government-guaranteed housing and has rejected market-based housing systems.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Weaver publicly advocated rent strikes and eviction blockades, encouraging tenants to withhold rent as a form of political pressure.

In 2021, Weaver was nominated to the City Planning Commission, but the nomination was withdrawn following backlash over her prior statements and social media activity.

Appointment under Zohran Mamdani

On January 1, 2026, Mayor Zohran Mamdani appointed Weaver as director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants. Mamdani defended the appointment despite renewed scrutiny of Weaver’s ideological views and public statements.

Controversy and criticism

Racial rhetoric

Following her appointment, multiple media outlets reported on Weaver’s past statements characterizing homeownership as a tool of “white supremacy” and calling for policies that would reduce white middle-class wealth.

Reported statements include calls to “impoverish the white middle class,” opposition to white men holding public office, and assertions that American wealth was built exclusively for white people.

These remarks were condemned by critics as racially discriminatory and incompatible with equal protection under the law.

As is often the case, "Mom of Zohran Mamdani aide who said owning a home fuels ‘white supremacy’ has $1.6M house in Tennesse."

Public response

Despite sustained criticism, Mamdani has continued to defend Weaver, stating she would hold landlords accountable and strengthen tenant enforcement. It marked the first crisis in his newsletter administration.