NEW YORK (The Thursday Times) — New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has shaved off the beard that made him the city’s first bearded mayor since 1913, and grown a moustache instead, for a cause: men’s health.
“I’m sporting a mustache this ‘Movember’ to raise awareness of men’s health issues, including prostate cancer,” Mamdani wrote on X on Monday night, after a City Hall spokesperson confirmed the reason. “But this isn’t just (upper) lip service.” He said his administration was putting $4 million towards a new prostate cancer centre at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn.
The change caught New Yorkers by surprise. He still had the beard on Friday night, when he met trick-or-treaters in Queens with Governor Kathy Hochul. By Sunday morning it was gone, as he handed out water and high-fives along the New York City Marathon route in a suit, a baseball cap and a yellow construction vest. Some people online took the moustache for a disguise.
What Movember is
Movember is a global charity campaign that raises awareness of men’s health, including prostate cancer, testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention. Participants usually start November clean-shaven and grow a moustache through the month.
In the video with his post, Mamdani urges people to talk to their doctors about regular screenings, especially seniors, and points them to mentalhealthconnect.nyc.gov, a city site listing more than 600 mental health providers. He stands beside a colleague wearing a fake moustache, and ends by asking: “What do you think, handlebar next?”
