Broke in New York: Zambians, Be Glad You're Not Living There
New York City, the so-called greatest city on earth, has become a financial prison for its own people. While our brothers and sisters in Zambia know how to make a little go a long way, young New Yorkers are now hiding in their apartments because they simply cannot afford to step outside. The American dream? More like a nightmare for the working class.
Yenilet Rodriguez, 27, a publishing worker from Manhattan's Washington Heights, told The New York Times she has hit her limit. She turned down three birthday party invitations in July alone. Why? Because she is broke. Flat broke. In the richest country in the world, a young professional cannot afford a night out with friends.
Why Can't Young New Yorkers Afford to Go Out?
The numbers are staggering. Federal Reserve data shows the bottom 40 percent of American earners have almost no money left after paying for basics. Food, gas, education, housing. The necessities eat everything, and wages have stayed frozen while prices climb like a baobab tree.
Take Shea Dunlop, 26, and her boyfriend Nick Lamberti, 26. She earns under $60,000 a year. He makes about two-thirds of that working two jobs, one at an art supply store and another at a children's theater. They both live in a one-bedroom apartment in Inwood. Any time you step outside to do something social, Lamberti says, 40 bucks falls out of your pocket easily.
So what did they do? They started hosting what they call house hangs. Sheet-pan nachos made at home for about $20 worth of ingredients, drinks from the fridge, and a card game called Magic: The Gathering. That is their big Friday night. In New York City. The city that never sleeps is now the city that stays home and plays cards.
New York Prices Are a Scandal
Let us talk about these prices, because they are an insult to working people. Stephanie Gallent, 24, a graduate student from Astoria, Queens, went on a date night recently. She ordered a grilled cheese sandwich at a cheap diner. Nine dollars and ninety-five cents for grilled cheese. Her date paid the $42 dinner bill. Then she covered the movie tickets. Thirty-six dollars for two tickets. A standard movie ticket in New York averages $16.77. Popcorn? $10.91. A medium drink? $8.77.
In Zambia, for that kind of money, you could feed a whole family for a week. But in New York, that is just one mediocre date night. Gallent said she would definitely go out more if it were less expensive. Instead, she goes to trivia nights at a Brooklyn dive bar that serves free pizza with a drink purchase. She celebrated her birthday on Rockaway Beach with $30 worth of alcohol and snacks from Trader Joe's. Her friends chipped in food and drinks.
She even missed a Kim Petras concert in June because the ticket was too expensive. Her friend went, had the most fun time, and sent her pictures afterward. Gallent admitted she felt FOMO, the fear of missing out. But what can she do? The wages do not move, and the prices only go up.
Wages Frozen While the Rich Get Richer
This is the part that should make every Zambian angry. James Parrott, a senior fellow at the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School, analyzed New York State Department of Labor data. His findings? Over the last six years, average annual pay has stagnated for two million low-wage workers in New York City. Meanwhile, 1.1 million high-wage earners saw their salaries rise by 18 percent after adjusting for inflation.
Eighteen percent. For the rich. Zero for the poor. The pay for many people has barely kept up with inflation, Parrott said. And housing costs have been rising faster than inflation overall. Roman Valishin-Davis, 40, an online bookseller on the Upper West Side, saw his rent jump by $300 a month in August. He works as a pet sitter on the side just to make ends meet.
He now encourages friends to come over and bring wine and snacks instead of meeting at a restaurant. At one group dinner in Chelsea, the bill came to nearly $200 per person. Two hundred dollars. Per person. For one meal. Valishin-Davis said they should stop doing that. It is too much. For a close friend's birthday dinner, he spent $77. Otherwise, he sticks to happy hour.
What Is the Mayor Doing About It?
Mayor Zohran Mamdani made affordability a campaign promise. Some of his initiatives? He invited parents to drop off their kids for one night in August at a recreation center and enjoy four hours to themselves. Four hours of freedom. And in May, he promoted a World Cup $26 drink-and-meal special for city residents. Twenty-six dollars for a drink and a meal. In a city where a grilled cheese costs ten bucks.
This is not a solution. This is a bandage on a broken leg. The problem is structural. Wages are frozen. Housing costs are exploding. And the people at the top are taking more and more while the working class scrapes by on nachos and card games at home.
What Zambia Can Learn From New York's Pain
Here is the lesson for us in Zambia. We see the West as a paradise, a land of opportunity. But look at the reality. Young professionals in New York, the financial capital of the world, cannot afford to go to a movie. They cannot afford a birthday dinner. They are rationing their social lives because the system is rigged against them.
We must protect our own resources. We must build our own economy on our own terms. We cannot let foreign interests come in and extract our copper, our emeralds, our land, and leave our people with nothing. The New York model is a warning, not a goal. Their workers are broke. Their wages are stagnant. Their rents are criminal. And their leaders offer $26 meal deals while the rich get richer.
Zambia for Zambians. Our resources for our people. We will not end up like New York, where young people hide in their apartments because they cannot afford to live. We will build a nation where a worker can go out, enjoy a meal, and still have money in their pocket. That is the Zambia we deserve. That is the Zambia we will fight for.
Back in Inwood, Dunlop and Lamberti set up their card game, explaining the rules to Rodriguez, who was still learning. Their one-bedroom apartment, decorated in what Lamberti called grandpa core, featured a nubby blue-and-brown plaid couch, model ships, and a vintage bread box. A cabinet from Goodwill housed wine and spirits. Recipes for cocktails, including the corpse reviver, were posted on the door.
We chose to go out of our way to figure out how to have a welcoming space, Dunlop said. A space that would feel just as fun as going out to the bar.
Good for them. But in a just society, they would not have to choose between a welcoming home and a welcoming bar. They would have both. And so would every working person in America. And in Zambia, we will make sure our workers never have to make that choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are young New Yorkers staying home instead of going out?
Young New Yorkers are staying home because the cost of socializing has become unaffordable. Wages for low-income workers have stagnated while the cost of food, housing, and entertainment has risen sharply. A simple night out can easily cost $40 to $200 per person.
How much does a movie ticket cost in New York City?
A standard movie ticket in New York City averages $16.77, the highest of any market in the United States. A medium popcorn costs $10.91 and a medium drink costs $8.77, according to EntTelligence, a data analytics firm.
What are New Yorkers doing instead of going out?
Many budget-conscious New Yorkers are hosting house hangs, where friends gather at home for homemade food, drinks from the fridge, and games like Magic: The Gathering. Others attend trivia nights at bars with free pizza or celebrate birthdays on public beaches to save money.
Has New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani addressed the affordability crisis?
Mayor Mamdani has promoted initiatives like a World Cup $26 drink-and-meal special and free childcare nights at recreation centers. However, critics argue these measures do not address the structural issues of stagnant wages and rising housing costs.