The man caught on video lashing out at people for speaking Spanish has been identified as attorney Aaron Schlossberg. Twitter users made the identification, and it is being widely reported that he is the man.
The good news is that
a GoFundMe account has been set up to send a Mariachi band to Schlossberg’s Manhattan office. According to the fundraiser, “Any leftover money will be used to send a delicious Taco Truck lunch to the staff and a copy of all federal and state statute mentioning undocumented immigrants do not qualify for welfare.”
One person said they spoke with a friend who went to law school with Schlossberg.
A lot of people are sharing this video. I shared it earlier and got a phone call from someone in my circle who went to law school with him. Aaron M. Schlossberg. Here’s his website: https://t.co/jjj8Hdfrni All systems go! https://t.co/qThzWOIedX
Eric Fernandez (@raffiafern) May 16, 2018
Schlossberg’s LinkedIn profile is no longer available, but the man in the video does look like the man on Schlossberg’s website. Fair360, formerly DiversityInc did not independently confirm his identity, though. As of now there has not been any kind of statement from the law firm confirming or denying he is the man in the video.
If Schlossberg is in fact the man in the video, it comes as no surprise. Schlossberg, reportedly a registered Republican, is a supporter of President Donald Trump; he donated $500 to Trump’s campaign. In Trump’s America, the new normal is to attack people who know another language.
Apparently, Schlossberg thinks he has more of a right to be in America than patrons and employees at Fresh Kitchen in New York City
But luckily, much of the incident was caught on video and is now on Facebook.
“Your clients and your staff are speaking Spanish to staff when they should be speaking English,” Schlossberg says to a manager.
“Every person I listen to. He spoke it, he spoke it, she’s speaking it. It’s America.”
“Yeah, it is America!” a woman is heard saying in the background amid laughter at the man’s outrage.
“He’s very ignorant,” someone says.
About 40 million people in the United States can speak Spanish. It is the most common non-English language used nationwide not just among Latinos.
“I will be following up,” Schlossberg continues, “and my guess is they’re not documented, so my next call is to ICE to have each one of them kicked out of my country. If they have the balls to come here and live off of my money I pay for their welfare. I pay for their ability to be here.”
“The least they could do is speak English,” he adds.
Of course, Schlossberg had no way of knowing if the people he attacked were undocumented, aside from his own prejudice.
Thanks to the power of the Internet, though, racism comes at a price. The Law Office of Aaron M. Schlossberg has received a slew of poor, 1-star reviews on Yelp. It has garnered so much attention that Yelp put a notice on the page saying that the business is being monitored “for content related to media reports.”
According to Heavy, before his LinkedIn profile was taken down it said that Schlossberg studied abroad in Madrid. And his law firm’s website advertises that they speak Spanish, among other languages. Turns out diversity in language is okay when it’s profitable.
“‘Aaron M. Schlossberg doesn’t seem to mind people who speak other languages when he can make money from them,’ one Twitter user commented. Another seconded that statement, tweeting, ‘For the record, I’d like to point out that when the ball bag Aaron M. Schlossberg wants your money, he gladly speaks numerous languages.’ And a third tweeted, ‘Anyone else notice Schlossberg’s website Does he call ICE after he takes your money #DespicableHumanBeing,'” Heavy reported.
At least one person on Twitter believes he recognizes Schlossberg as an attendee of Trump’s rallies.
I wouldn’t soon forget him. Had that crazy look in his eyes. Was a die hard Trumper and pretty unreasonably upset there were Jews supporting Palestine around. pic.twitter.com/RSE5QrzlwP
Isaac Saul (@Ike_Saul) May 16, 2018
Apparently he told someone You are not a real Jew.”
The asshole lawyer caught on video mad about people speaking Spanish in NYC that @ShaunKing is calling out@Ike_Saul caught him on video yelling “You are not a Jew” to Jewish people last year.pic.twitter.com/rSl2rpnmZw
jordan (@JordanUhl) May 16, 2018
ICE, which stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, distanced itself from the man’s threat to call the office,” the New York Times reported.
ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Tip Line is solely for the purposes of making legitimate reports of suspected criminal activity. The Tip Line should not be used as an instrument to intimidate or harass,” a spokeswoman for the New York branch of ICE told the Times.
The borough’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, on Twitter reminded people that New York is home to a diverse population and its residents speak a variety of languages.
New York City’s diversity is our strength. It’s what makes this city great. The 8.6 million people who call this city home speak more than 200 languages they’re all New Yorkers and they’re all welcome here.
Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) May 16, 2018
The incident goes to show that racism has found a safe space in Trump’s America even in a place like Manhattan, which is more racially diverse than the country overall, particularly when it comes to its Latino population. Manhattan is 47 percent white and 26 percent Latino. America as a whole is 61 percent white and 17 percent Latino.
New York is also a sanctuary city.
But Trump gave the green light to target Latinos the day he kicked off his campaign, when he called Mexicans drug dealers and rapists. He escalated further when he attacked a judge who he called a Mexican.” Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who works in California, was born in Indiana.
