Aaron Schlossberg, 42, is the New York City lawyer who went viral after a video was released online showing him going on an angry rant against employees speaking in Spanish to themselves and customers. Schlossberg was identified by social media users on Wednesday after the video of the rant went viral, according to WPIX-TV. Schlossberg’s rant has been called “racist” and “bigoted” by numerous social media users and media outlets.
In the 55-second viral video, Aaron Schlossberg is seen speaking with a Fresh Kitchen employee, visibly angry while reporting that the staff was speaking to customers in Spanish. Schlossberg said “they should be speaking in English.”
The employee tells Schlossberg that sometimes the staff does speak with customers in English, and Schlossberg quickly responds with “every person I listened to, he spoke it, he spoke it, she’s speaking it, it’s America. Your staff should be speaking English, not Spanish.”
Schlossberg also accused the staff (who he reportedly heard speaking Spanish) of being undocumented immigrants and threatened to call ICE agents on them. “My guess is they are not documented. So my next call is to ICE is 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 live here. The least they can do is speak English. If you intend on running a place in Midtown Manhattan your staff should be speaking English, not Spanish.”
He concludes his rant with “Honey, I’m calling ICE” and “Maybe you shouldn’t eat that sandwich, take a break from the food,” before leaving the restaurant.
One witness told The Gothamist that Schlossberg was “thrown out” of the establishment, saying “[They] let the lady stay but had the man go, because he was causing the trouble, screaming at people. The witness said, “I don’t know what to say. People are taught not to be bystanders, but it’s hard to get involved. This guy was really, really angry.”
Another worker who spoke with WPIX-TV said, “It was crazy. We just watched him scream, it was very fast. After he left, we just went back to work.”
Schlossberg has his own law office in Manhattan, which is right next door to Fresh Kitchen, where the viral incident took place. The video of the rant was first released online on Tuesday, May 15, by Edward Suazo, which can be seen on his Facebook account.
“They where on there [sic] lunch time and ordering there [sic] food and just because they where speaking in Spanish to the waiter this asshole jumps in and started to call the waiter and my wife and her best friend all types of names and threatened to call I.C.E on them and the employees,” Suazo wrote. “What a big man talking down to couple of women and a helpless employee. I wish someone tells me I can’t speak in my native language! First of all they wasn’t talking to you!!”
Who is Aaron Schlossberg?
Twitter screenshot of Aaron Schlossberg during protest
Aaron Schlossberg runs his own office, in New York City, called the Law Office of Aaron M. Schlossberg, ESQ., P.L.L.C. According to his LinkedIn profile, while in college, he studied aboard in Madrid, Spain. He also touts his ability to speak fluent Spanish with his clients, and details this skill on his law page and LinkedIn profile.
Schlossberg attended a protest alongside Trump supporters on May 25, 2017, according to a report from A Plus editor and columnist Issac Saul. The columnist attended the rally and filmed Schlossberg’s protesting, and recorded him telling Jewish people who support Palestine that “You are not a Jew,” and chanting the name of “Milo.”
“My encounter with the man happened at an anti-Linda Sarsour rally on May 25, 2017. I reported on the rally for A Plus,” Saul wrote on Wednesday. “Sarsour was expected to deliver a commencement speech at City University of New York’s Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, and protesters had gathered on the street outside of my office building to object. Milo Yiannopoulos, Pamela Geller, and a host of other far-right conservative provocateurs were there.”
Schlossberg is a 1994 graduate of The Haverford School in suburban Philadelphia, according to his Linkedin profile. He’s also a graduate of John Hopkins University, earning an English degree in 1998. While enrolled as a student at John Hopkins University, Schlossberg worked at a student-run newspaper, The News-Letter, as a staff writer. He later studied aboard in Madrid, Spain. He received his third collegiate degree at George Washington University Law School in 2002.
The 42-year-old lawyer also once worked as a clerk for New Jersey Superior Court Judge John Peterson, and then in 2003, became employed as an associate attorney at The Law Offices of Michael Haskel in Mineola, New York. He moved around quite a bit in 2005, going from the law firm Ohrenstein & Brown in Manhattan before moving to Havkins Rosenfield Ritzert & Varriale, in the same city, where he worked as an associate from 2005 to 2012.
“Aaron Schlossberg focuses on complex commercial and insurance coverage matters involving corporate clients, entrepreneurs and individual policyholders. Mr. Schlossberg drafts and negotiates high-level contract documents and appears frequently in state and federal courts throughout New York State,” he wrote on Linkedin. “Mr. Schlossberg’s approach has always involved creating advantages for his clients through utilization of a detailed knowledge of the law, extensive trial experience and a creative approach to dispute resolution. By excelling in these three areas — knowledge, experience and creativity — he is able to resolve even the most complex disputes.”
The LinkedIn profile also said that “Ms. Schlossberg’s focus is on providing his clients with a resolution that is efficient and effective. If he can resolve a dispute without having to litigate, he will. Mr. Schlossberg has been able to generate positive results for clients in the past through various pre-dispute resolution techniques.”
Aaron Schlossberg’s Law Firm
Law Office of Aaron M. Schlossberg, Esq., P.L.L.C. website
In June 2012, Schlossberg started his own law firm called The Law Office of Aaron M. Schlossberg, Esq. P.L.L.C. His LinkedIn profile states that “The firm’s business and commercial law attorneys serve individuals, entrepreneurs and business owners in Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties and beyond. The firm handles business law matters, including commercial litigation, contract disputes, partnership & shareholder disputes, talent/entertainment agreements, construction development disputes, and commercial & residential real estate contracts. Additionally, the firm handles insurance coverage litigation and provides outside counsel and pre-litigation dispute resolution.”
The firm’s website states that, “At The Law Office of Aaron M. Schlossberg, Esq., P.L.L.C., in New York City, we are committed to providing our clients with the highly effective results that they need. We serve individuals, entrepreneurs and business owners throughout New York, New Jersey and abroad. Our approach has always involved creating advantages for our clients through utilization of a detailed knowledge of the law, extensive trial experience and a creative approach to dispute resolution. By excelling in these three areas — knowledge, experience and creativity — we are able to resolve even the most complex disputes.”
Schlossberg’s law office has received numerous 1-star ratings and angry reviews (on Yelp, Facebook, and Google pages) after the release of the viral video reportedly showing him ranting at employees for speaking Spanish. The Facebook page for his law firm has been deleted following the controversy surrounding the viral video.