Zohran Mamdani, the leading pro-communist candidate for mayor of New York City, has been accused of misrepresenting his ethnicity on his application to Columbia University, as reported by a recent article.
The 33-year-old Muslim immigrant allegedly identified himself as both “black” and “Asian” on his application to the prestigious Ivy League institution when he was a high school senior in 2009, according to the New York Times. Despite his father, Mahmood, serving as the director of the Institute of African Studies at Columbia during that time, Mamdani’s application was ultimately rejected.
Mamdani, who immigrated to the United States from Uganda, stated to the publication that he does not identify with either race, but rather considers himself “an American who was born in Africa.”
“Most college applications do not provide an option for Indian-Ugandans, so I selected multiple categories in an attempt to represent the entirety of my heritage,” said the Democratic Socialist. He also asserted that he indicated “Ugandan” in a section of the application that permitted him to elaborate on his background.
“Although these categories are limiting, I aimed for my college application to accurately depict who I am,” the assemblyman from Queens conveyed to the New York Times.
Mamdani, who is currently the frontrunner in the NYC mayoral election after securing the Democratic Party nomination last month, further asserted that he was not attempting to gain an advantage in the admissions process. Other prominent politicians, including Senator Elizabeth Warren (R-MA), have acknowledged misrepresenting their ethnicity on college applications to gain a competitive edge.
Similar to many prestigious universities, Columbia has historically considered ethnicity in its admissions process, which has adversely affected white and Asian applicants. The Supreme Court has since ruled against this practice, although numerous major institutions have circumvented the race-based criteria by shifting their focus to “socioeconomic factors” to achieve similar objectives.
The news emerged after the New York Times acquired records that were hacked from over two million students, applicants, and employees of Columbia University during a targeted cyberattack last week. In an anonymous letter issued post-breach, the solitary hacker asserted that their intention was to investigate whether the university continued to implement affirmative action in its admissions process.
Mamdani has faced significant criticism both on a national scale and locally in the aftermath of the hack. “It is shameful to take advantage of this nation’s history of slavery that oppressed African slaves,” stated Matthew Schweber, a member of the Columbia University Jewish Alumni Association, in an interview with the New York Post.
“Zohran Mamdani’s manipulation of this issue further highlights the deceitfulness of his candidacy and the falsehoods and pretenses he employs to advocate for the oppressed. He is a product of privilege, born to two exceptionally affluent parents.”
Gerard Kassar, the chairman of the state Conservative Party, accused Mamdani of intentionally misrepresenting his ethnicity to secure an advantage.
“Mamdani has much to clarify. This is part of the deception he has inflicted on New Yorkers throughout the primary campaign,” Kassar, a resident of Brooklyn, remarked to the publication. “His aim was to gain admission to Columbia through affirmative action. It simply did not succeed. He attempted to enter a school by misrepresenting his racial identity. Race is a scientific classification, not merely the country of one’s origin,” he further commented.