NYC Council, GOP Lawmaker Agree To Settlement Over Islamophobic Posts

NEW YORK CITY — The New York City Council has agreed to drop a disciplinary case against Council member Vickie Paladino over apparent Islamophobic remarks she made on social media.

The two sides reached a settlement with Paladino dropping her lawsuit against the city council.

In March, the council member filed a lawsuit arguing that the ethics complaint infringed on her First Amendment rights to free speech.

Paladino has agreed to delete three social media posts and will remove the title of "councilwoman" from her personal social media account.

The council member released a statement after the decision.

“I am responsible for the content, I never intended to make Council Members or staff feel unwelcome or unsafe in their work environment," Paladino said.

Sandra Ung, chair of the Council's ethics committee, also released a statement.

“I believe the resolution strikes the right balance between protection of Council staff and the First Amendment liberties of Council Members,” she said in a post on X.

Among the previous posts cited as Islamophobic, the council member suggested Muslims should be expelled from Western nations and described a photo of Mayor Zohran Mamdani praying with Muslim sanitation workers as “part of Islamic conquest.”

She previously called for the deportation of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Both the mayor and Council Speaker Julie Menin had criticized the council member for her remarks.