Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres on Sunday slammed Mayor Eric Adams’ administration for giving only a slap on the wrist to a taxpayer-funded staffer caught ripping down an Israeli hostage poster.
Nallah Sutherland, 25, an Adams’ staffer whose job is suppposedly to bridge “cultural divides,” tore up the poster on the Upper East Side on Nov. 2 and dumped it in the trash — then allegedly attacked an onlooker who questioned her, according to the social-media platform Jews of NY and nonprofit StopAntisemetism.
In response to the alleged hate-fueled antic, City Hall simply made Sutherland undergo “multicultural training” and put a note in her file, administration sources exclusively told The Post over the weekend.
“I would fire anyone who engaged in acts of antisemitism like tearing down posters of the hostages,” Torres told The Post in a statement Sunday. “I call on the mayor to do the same.
“The city and the state should not only preach but also practice zero tolerance for antisemitism,” said the Democrat, who is eying a run for governor.
Torres added on his personal X account, “If I were at the helm of NYS or NYC government, antisemites need not apply. Tearing down posters of the hostages is completely unacceptable and would not be tolerated.”
Sutherland works as a special-event coordinator for the Mayor’s Office of Special Projects and Community Events, raking in $61,135 a year helping to plan celebrations Hizzoner hosts honoring the diverse city’s many ethnic groups.
She is part of a team whose job is supposed to “bridge cultural divides … and support key city initiatives that help provide a source of strength, unity, and resilience to New Yorkers across all communities within the five boroughs and beyond,” according to the office’s website.
Footage of the Nov. 2 incident at the corner of East 84th Street and York Avenue shows Sutherland tearing off the poster and tossing it in the trash.
“Is there a reason you’re taking those down?” asks an eyewitness about the poster, part of a public art campaign to raise awareness for the Israeli and American hostages taken captive by Hamas terrorists during their Oct. 7, 2023, attack on the Jewish state.
“Those were hostages. They were taken by terrorists,” the eyewitness says, according to the 20-second clip he recorded.
Sutherland then walks toward the man and swipes his phone with her right hand, briefly knocking it out of focus, the video shows.
“That’s assault actually. You know that, right?” the man tells Sutherland, who can be seen in the clip smirking and walking away.
The government employee began working for the Democratic mayor — a staunch Israel supporter – in 2023, records show.
Sutherland is a “junior staffer” who does not directly interact with Adams, according to sources.
“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 mayor’s office said in a statement.
“That is why disciplinary action was taken immediately after learning about this incident a few weeks ago.”
Sutherland did not return messages from The Post.
