I was at Mamdani's 'Rental Ripoff' event, where New Yorkers vented about rats and 'bad landlords'

Clark Hodgin for BI

Plenty of civic events take place in public school gyms. Few, if any, are advertised with the bravado of a Don King-like boxing promoter. The first of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's "Rental Ripoff Hearings," held Thursday night at George Westinghouse High School in downtown Brooklyn, was one of those rare exceptions. The event, billed in bold, Rumble-in-the-Jungle-esque lettering as "New Yorkers vs. Bad Landlords," drew hundreds of tenants — plus a media gaggle worthy of a marquee bout ...