A New York City school crossing guard on the Upper West Side of Manhattan has been removed from her post after allegedly hurling antisemitic epithets at the children and their parents and loafing on the job, according to the New York Post.
The crossing guard, who was located at the corner of West 79th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, was suspended on Feb. 4 after a NYPD probe sparked by complaints from a resident, community leaders and City Council member Gale Brewer.
NYPD Sgt. Edward Riley told The Post, “The disciplinary process is ongoing,” but released no details on the guard’s current employment status.
The complaints date back to Jan. 13, when a neighborhood parent and her nine-year-old daughter were verbally attacked by the guard as they crossed the street.
The 43-year-old mother of four said she heard the crossing guard point out “those Jewish kids” before cursing the “sh***y” food at a nearby kosher restaurant. When the guard realized the mother was looking at her, she called the two “nasty” and said, “Now we know why there’s no peace in the Middle East.” She told The Post she heard the same guard telling another mother, “Push your Jewish kids into the street and get hit by a bus.”
According to Dale Brown, president of the West 79th Street Block Association, the guard’s antisemitic hate was repeated to a Jan. 13 community zoom meeting. Brown spoke with NYPD Capt. Neil Zuber, commander of the 20th Precinct about the guard after the meeting and then emailed Brewer, who spoke with the union representing the guard to “pave the way” for her removal.
Last week a harassment complaint was filed by outraged parents at the 20th Precinct as well. The investigation into the guard’s behavior is continuing, NYPD said. There has been no public statement from Brewer about the complaints.
