Zohran Mamdani’s campaign to become the next mayor of New York has made front-page news, capturing public attention both locally and nationally with its surrounding controversy. While some critics of Mamdani are simply Islamophobic, others have raised valid concerns about aspects of his past.

Most notably, it has been widely reported that Mamdani co-founded a chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine at Bowdoin College prior to his graduation in 2014. Yesterday’s university students are tomorrow’s national leaders, yet current debates about Mamdani largely overlook his ties to SJP. Understanding what lies behind the curtain of SJP matters — not just today, but for decades to come.