Context: In one of the news articles, there was a statement like this: "Mayor, the city is burning on you".
The article discusses protests and arsons in the city. What exactly "burning on you mean"? Is it the arson or it means something else? I'm confused because of "on you".
Thanks in advance.
This definition of ON should help
From Merriam-Webster:
7c—used as a function word to indicate the focus of obligation or responsibility
drinks are on the house
put the blame on me
Without more context of what the article is discussing, I can't explain what it means in detail. But I'm quite sure it means that the mayor has the responsibility of the city, and the city is (if figuratively) doing very poorly or (if literally) burning from riots.
You may have heard a simple phrase using "on" this way:
This is on you!
Meaning: "This was your responsibility!" and usually "This is your fault!"
So the article is placing the blame and responsibility on the Mayor for what is happening in the city.
Yes, it's the fires. If something usually bad happens to you, you can say that it is happening "on you". It is a situation that you have to suffer or deal with. The house was burning on me, my car quit on me. A many-times widow might say "I marry men, but they keep dying on me". The mayor is told that his city is "burning on him". As a mayor, that is, he needs to do something.
