Report: NYC School Used Mamdani's Wife's Art in 'Social Justice' Lessons but Snubbed Holocaust Survivor

The artwork of New York City’s Democrat socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s wife, Rama Duwaji, was reportedly used in social justice lessons for middle schoolers in 2025, but the school initially denied a request to have a Holocaust survivor speak.

Duwaji’s work appeared alongside other artists in the course titled “Art for Social Change” at MS 447 in Boerum Hill, and one educator told parents the children worked on culture, identities, and “social justice issues,” the New York Post reported Monday.

Teachers reportedly asked students to use Duwaji’s work as inspiration for their own, asking them what message they believed she was conveying.

According to the Post, some of Duwaji’s work had messages geared towards people fighting tyranny and one was called, “Pulse of Protest.”

Duwaji was recently accused of liking social media posts celebrating the violent October 7, 2023 terrorist attack on Israel, and allegedly glorifying terrorists on X and Tumblr when she was living in the Middle East.

Parents argued in November that school leadership using Duwaji’s artwork meant they were forcing an anti-Israel agenda on the children and also highlighted the fact they would not allow Holocaust survivor Sami Steigmann to share his story with the young people.

“He was eventually allowed to speak last month following a firestorm of criticism,” the Post article said.

Prior to the event at the school, Steigmann told Fox 5, “The Holocaust must be taught for ever and ever, and the reason is it is the best example, in my opinion, what hate can do not only to a person, but to a group of people, to a nation, and to the world. The whole world was united in annihilating only one group of people, of the Jewish people. And this is to teach what hate can do.”

Listen to Steigmann share more details about about his survival here:

“The Post reported Sunday that Duwaji was deeply involved in a democratic socialist activist campaign that pushed for political candidates who would be critical of Israel and backed a controversial bill targeting pro-Israel charities,” the outlet said.