Victoria Ruiz, the frontperson of Downtown Boys, has resigned from a public defenders’ workplace after a viral video purported to indicate her tearing down a poster in New York calling for the return of an Israeli hostage. In her resignation letter, Ruiz stated posters have been, actually, put up by agitators at a vigil for Palestinian civilians killed within the battle, and that, along with the hostage images, the poster she eliminated contained handwritten textual content advocating for the killing of Palestinian civilians.
Within the letter, Ruiz stated agitators heckled mourners on the vigil earlier than placing up the posters. “The one who took the video of me was amongst this group,” she wrote. “I noticed that one of many posters contained handwritten statements justifying the bombing of Palestinian civilians—the identical individuals whose deaths we have been there to mourn. I used to be deeply offended by the statements on the posters, and went over to take that poster down. At that time, the person from the group approached me and began recording the video, verbally misrepresenting on the video what I used to be doing and what I used to be taking problem with.”
She added, “I reject anti-semitism and I take very critically the troubling rise in each anti-semitism and Islamophobia in current weeks. I additionally mourn the large lack of all harmless lives, and would by no means search to disparage or devalue any life, together with the lives of Israeli civilians.”
Ruiz stated she resigned below strain from her administration at New York County Defender Companies with out having had an opportunity to elucidate the character of the posters. She added that administration spoke with retailers together with the New York Publish with out giving her discover, in search of her model of occasions, or giving her a possibility to talk with journalists.
In a press release to the Publish earlier than Ruiz’s resignation, Lupe Todd-Medina, spokesperson for NYCDS, had stated, “It has come to our consideration that one in all our attorneys, Victoria Ruiz, not too long ago attended a public vigil solely in her capability as a personal citizen.” The assertion continued, partly, “Ms. Ruiz has apologized to those that have been harm or confused by her actions. After an inside overview, and a pledge by all concerned to do higher, we settle for this apology and now refocus on the vigorous pursuit of our mission: attaining justice and dignity for each particular person we characterize.”
Ruiz stated, nonetheless, that, over a sequence of calls, NYCDS indicated that she “wanted to resign instantly, or the board could be wanting into termination proceedings.” She additional alleged that, after the Publish article was revealed, NYCDS didn’t permit her to be represented by authorized counsel in discussions of her employment.
Pitchfork has reached out to Victoria Ruiz for extra remark and knowledge. NYCDS’ Lupe Todd-Medina provided no additional remark when reached by Pitchfork.
