New Delhi, Nov. 9 -- There is a kind of person the Western press often profiles with the headline: "The Meaning of. (name here)." Zohran Mamdani is that person. We may not know what being modern exactly is, but we know it when we see it. And Mamdani is modern, especially when he says wonderful things about social justice, race and dignity.

Many Indians, even those who can't name their chief ministers, who believe in democracy when it's posh, have been very excited, as though it is their lives that are about to improve. Across the world, Mamdani has given hope to people who feared the end of liberal America, though New York City's mayor-elect himself cannot run for president because he is not a 'natural-born citizen.' He was born in Ugand...