'Sweetheart Deal': Former US Employee Gets Anti-Bias Course for Harassing Muslim Vendor

IQNA – A hate crime charge against a former State Department employee who harassed a Muslim food vendor in New York City could be dropped if he completes an anti-bias course and meets other conditions, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

The man, Stuart Seldowitz, 65, was accused of making Islamophobic remarks and threats to a Halal vendor on the Upper East Side in November, while the city was witnessing heated protests over the Israel-Hamas war. His tirade was captured on video and circulated online, sparking outrage from Muslim groups and civil rights advocates.

Seldowitz, who had a long career in government under both Democratic and Republican administrations, agreed to enroll in a 26-week program run by Queens Counseling for Change, a nonprofit organization that provides counseling and education to people who have committed hate crimes or domestic violence. He also agreed to stay away from the vendor, whom the police identified as a 24-year-old man, and to avoid any new arrests, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office.

If Seldowitz complies with these terms, the prosecutors will ask the court to dismiss his charge, which is a misdemeanor.

However, some Muslim leaders criticized the deal as too lenient and said it sent a wrong message to the victims of hate crimes. Afaf Nasher, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations of New York, said in a statement on Thursday that Seldowitz’s “vile verbal abuse and harassment” deserved a more serious punishment.

“The sweetheart deal he received from the Manhattan D.A.’s office is a shameful affront of our justice system and wholly unfitting of his actions,” she said.

In the videos, Seldowitz can be heard telling the vendor: “If we killed 4,000 Palestinian kids, you know what? It wasn’t enough.” He also said he would send the vendor’s pictures to “friends in immigration” and insulted the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He also insulted the vendor for not speaking English and called him “ignorant.”

Seldowitz previously worked as the acting director for the National Security Council’s South Asia Directorate and in the State Department’s Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs.

Source: Agencies