Who's Funding Zohran Mamdani's Campaign?

A political group called "We the People, America For All" has been spending a lot of money to support Zohran Mamdani, who is leading in the race to become the next mayor of New York City. This group has given over $36, 000 to put up video billboards that talk about Mamdani's plan to make bus rides free for everyone in the city. The main person who gives money to this group is called "The Truth Project. " The leader of this project is a lawyer from New Jersey named Abed Awad. He is also in charge of the money for the "We the People, America For All" group. Awad is also involved with something called the Palestinian-American Community Center. This center had a big meeting in April where a man named Wisam Rafeedie gave a speech. Rafeedie is a member of a group called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, or PFLP for short. This group is known for doing bad things, like hijacking planes and hurting people. The center has also helped Rafeedie sell his book and has invited other people from the PFLP to speak at their events. The PFLP is a group that the United States and other countries say is a terrorist organization. They were also involved in the attack on Israel in 2023.Some people who watch out for extremism in politics say that the ads for Mamdani's bus plan are a way for fringe groups to become more accepted. They say that these groups use popular ideas to gain support and become part of the mainstream. The "We the People, America For All" group is also connected to something called the "Uncommitted" movement. This movement tried to get Arab-Americans not to vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the last election because of their views on Israel. Awad's son and another man named Mo Maraqa helped start "The Truth Project. " Maraqa also worked with the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee during the election. Some Democrats blame the "Uncommitted" movement for Harris losing some states to President Trump. The group has not said where the money for the ads came from, but they say that they have followed all the rules. Awad and Maraqa have said that they are not connected to the PFLP and do not support any terrorist groups.