In March, Caroline Cutlip and some of her friends started a mutual aid group on the Upper East Side of Manhattan to connect the needy to food banks and go  shopping for the elderly and the immunocompromised.

All that sounds normal enough, But the group’s name, Not Me, UES, is strikingly similar to one of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign slogans—“Not Me, Us —and for a reason. Cutlip and her friends were volunteering for his campaign when they started it, and originally thought they would use the fund as a means to help spread Sanders’ message. Cutlip is even a pledged delegate for Sanders. 

But after an internal debate, they decided against using the fund to actively campaign.

“Some people were against putting any Bernie literature or any absentee ballot information in the bags because they didn't want people to feel like it was tit for tat,” Cutlip said.

While Not Me, UES ultimately decided not to distribute campaign material, they kept the name and still identify themselves as "former Bernie volunteers" on their Facebook page. There are several other political organizations across the city that have spun off mutual aid groups as well: members of the left-wing Democratic Socialists of America have started D.S.A.-branded funds across the five boroughs, as well as on Long Island. 

While serving constituents is a large part of the job of being an elected official, this kind of direct aid can raise comparisons to the infamous Tammany Hall.

For the full story, visit Gothamist.