An employee of the New York City Mayor’s officer has made headlines after she was caught on video tearing down an Israeli hostage poster and assaulting the individual who filmed her.
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The incident took place on November 2 in Manhattan when Nallah Sutherland, a special events coordinator, was spotted ripping the poster from a light pole. The video footage starts with Sutherland “tearing off the poster and tossing it in the trash,” according to The New York Post.
An eyewitness asked Sutherland, “Is there a reason you’re taking those down?”
The video quickly caught the attention of the StopAntisemitism nonprofit, which posted the footage on their social media platforms. Founder Liora Rez condemned Sutherland’s actions.
“Those were hostages. They were taken by terrorists,” she said, “Decisive action must be taken to purge this disgusting pro-jihadist sentiment from city government once and for all.”
Even more galling was the light punishment given to Sutherland. Mayor Eric Adams’ office required her to go through “multicultural training” and placed a note on her permanent work file.
Other prominent individuals condemned Sutherland’s behavior. Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (R-Brooklyn) criticized the fact that Sutherland is still employed despite essentially siding with a terrorist organization.
“It’s extremely hypocritical that someone who supports the murder of anyone still has a job, much less in a department that plays a vital role in our city’s diversity efforts – despite the fact that she cannot tolerate innocent Jews who were kidnapped by Hamas,” said Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (R-Brooklyn).
“Decisive action must be taken to purge this disgusting pro-jihadist sentiment from” city government “once and for all,” added Vernikov.
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Other witnesses to the act chose not to report it to the authorities because they did not believe law enforcement would take the matter seriously despite the rise in antisemitic incidents in the city. Rez told The New York Post that “’It’s a sad state of affairs when the victim doesn’t have trust in the NYPD or’” soft-on-crime Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg “’to properly investigate” hate crimes.’”
Yoav Davis, founder of Jews of NY, told The Post, “It is especially disturbing to learn that an individual employed by the mayor’s office — particularly in a position meant to celebrate the city’s diversity — is directly connected to this culture of hate.”
Despite the lenient punishment, Adams’ office condemned the incident in an official statement.
“Mayor Adams has been clear that hate has no place in our city, and the same – if not higher – standard should be held for our city’s more than 300,000 employees,” the statement read.
This act comes amid a disturbing rise in antisemitic sentiment being spread in the Big Apple and other parts of the country. Other pro-Hamas activists have vandalized or torn down posters featuring Israeli hostages.