Summary
Overview
This American Life explores humanity's complicated relationship with rats through stories from New York City's war on rodents, the love life of a rat owner, Alberta's successful rat eradication program, and a glimpse into rat family dynamics. The episode examines why rats captivate our attention so intensely and how different communities handle the rodent problem.
Mayor Adams Declares War on Rats
New York Mayor Eric Adams introduces the city's new rat czar at a spirited 2023 press conference in Harlem, complete with rat-fighting equipment and bold promises to eliminate the rodent population. Despite low approval ratings on other issues, Adams has made rats his signature cause, galvanizing New Yorkers around a common enemy. The press conference features colorful rhetoric and the rat czar's parents proudly recounting how their daughter organized her neighborhood against rats at age ten.
- Mayor Adams created a 'rat czar' position with a job listing calling for 'bloodthirsty' candidates with 'swashbuckling attitude' and 'aura of badassery'
- At time of press conference, Adams had huge disapproval ratings on crime and homelessness, with fewer than half of New Yorkers approving of his job performance
- The new rat czar's parents attended the press conference, proudly recounting how she mobilized her neighborhood against rats at age 10
" I hear it all the time. I'm on the trains. I'm walking the streets. People stop me and say, you know, we're with you, man. We hate those damn rats. "
" You'll be seeing a lot of me. And a lot less rats. "
A Harlem Resident's Rat Nightmare
Darnise Foster, who has lived on 138th Street in Harlem since the 1990s, describes how rats have invaded her building and neighborhood since the pandemic. She believes her landlord is deliberately allowing the rat problem to worsen as part of an effort to drive out rent-controlled tenants in a gentrifying area. The rats have become so pervasive that she and her children can barely walk down the street on garbage collection days, yet her kids have become surprisingly desensitized to the constant rodent presence.
- Darnise's building never had a rat problem until the pandemic, but now has rats in the basement and outside constantly
- On garbage collection day, rats run from pile to pile making it nearly impossible to walk safely on the sidewalk
- Darnise believes her landlord is using the rat problem to harass tenants and raise rents, having already driven out half the building's residents
- Her 9 and 12-year-old sons have become completely unfazed by rats, calmly identifying dead ones and observing their behavior
" Like, garbage collection day is the absolute worst. There's really no safe place, because they're running from garbage to garbage to garbage to garbage. Even in the middle of the street, it's not safe because they dart. "
" It means that you've done something terribly wrong in your life and you should correct it. If you're encountering rats like this, it's like a problem sign. It's like stop, change, do something different. "
📚 4 more sections below
Sign up to unlock the complete summary with all insights, key points, and quotes
Get this summary + all future This American Life episodes in your inbox
100% Free • Unsubscribe Anytime
Sign up now and we'll send you the complete summary of this episode, plus get notified when new This American Life episodes are released—delivered straight to your inbox within minutes.