All I want from Mayor Wu is a multicultural Christmas. The Electeds of Color party was an early present.

How dare she! Who the $@%! does she think is? The most powerful politician in Boston?

First there was outrage when the invite mistakenly went out to the entire Boston City Council, not just the six councilors of color. Then the real horror set in: the realization that white people are not welcome.

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To which people of color everywhere reacted: Welcome to our world.

That feeling of being excluded should have been short-lived. Wu threw another holiday soiree on Monday, also at the Parkman House, for a broader group of city and state politicians. About 50 people attended.

Now some people think Wu should end the tradition of an electeds of color party because it divides rather than unites. Wu has defended her decision explaining that it was her turn to host the annual get-together, which has happened for years.

Had Mayor Tom Menino thrown a Christmas party for Italian-Americans, or Mayor Marty Walsh one for Irish-Americans, would that be news? Or what if any mayor of Boston threw a reception just for women politicians?

Of course, none would have been newsworthy — until a woman of color was in charge. It’s the classic double standard.

Wu, in an interview on WBUR’s Radio Boston on Monday, said out loud what many of us were already thinking. “There’s a little bit of a political motive in terms of leaking it,” said Wu of the invite, which was first reported by The Boston Herald and went viral via the New York Post and Fox News.

Let’s call it what it is: the opening salvo in the 2025 mayoral race, where Wu could be portrayed as the politician who divides us.

Don’t fall for it, folks.

Representation matters. It matters that Boston’s first elected mayor of color can host a gathering for a dozen Black, Latino, and Asian politicians at a locale synonymous with power. I would have been offended had Wu not had the party at the Parkman House.

To me, it represented a night to remember how far we have come and how Boston’s power structure is finally changing to reflect the majority-minority city it became more than two decades ago.

Wu knew that, too, defiantly posting a picture on her personal Instagram of attendees. Among those in the chandeliered dining room: state Senator Liz Miranda, state representatives Russell Holmes, Sam Montaño, Brandy Fluker Oakley, and Chris Worrell, City Councilors Ricardo Arroyo and Ruthzee Louijeune, Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins, and Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden.

Representation matters because it translates into equitable policies.

On Wu’s watch, women and entrepreneurs of color were awarded 14 percent of the city of Boston’s contracts in fiscal 2023, more than double the figure the previous year. She created a reparations task force to better understand the legacy of slavery in Boston and recommend restorative justice solutions; an office of Black Male Advancement to improve outcomes and reduce systematic barriers for Black men and boys; and a life sciences workforce initiative to train Boston residents, including workers of color and women, who are underrepresented in the industry.

So why all the snarky headlines and handwringing about Wu’s alleged party faux-pas? Whether they admit it or not, white people are scared of losing power — be it a seat on the bus, a spot at the lunch counter, or an invitation to a holiday party.

Here’s how we can all get along: Stop thinking of politics as a zero sum game.

Shirley Leung is a Business columnist and host of the Globe Opinion podcast “Say More with Shirley Leung.” Find the podcast on Apple, Spotify, and globe.com/saymore. Follow her on Threads @shirley02186

Shirley Leung is a Business columnist. She can be reached at shirley.leung@globe.com.