Leftist Professor Receives Court Date For Allegedly Threatening Reporter

Earlier this year, Hunter College professor Shellyne Rodriguez attracted criticism for destroying a display set up by a pro-life student group on campus. Her expletive-filled tirade was soon being shared far and wide, primarily by conservative individuals and groups.

The story developed even further when a New York Post reporter arrived at her apartment and sought a comment for a story about the incident. Video footage appears to show Rodriguez brandishing a machete and repeatedly threatening the reporter and a freelance photographer who was accompanying him.

Hunter College fired Rodriguez and she was charged with three misdemeanor criminal counts including possession of a weapon and menacing. Following a status hearing earlier this week, a court date of Aug. 14 was established for a disposition in the case. 

The pending charges have not stopped Rodriguez from speaking out in her own defense. In fact, she is adamant that the actual victim in this ordeal is her.

“As much as this incident has stakes for my life, it is ultimately just one part of a broader political struggle taking place across the country,” she said. “Right-wing media organizations are weaponizing and sensationalizing this case to further their agenda, and using me as a prism through which to project their attacks on women, trans people, Black people, Latinx people, migrants, and beyond.”

She went on to malign her former employer, which she said “capitulated” to the “racists, White nationalists, and misogynists” who believe she should not attack pro-life students and threaten violence against reporters. 

In the end, Rodriguez complained that the situation has “taken a toll on [her] mental health.”

Despite what appears to be damning evidence against her, Rodriguez has received support from fellow leftists — including hundreds of people who signed a petition denouncing Hunter College’s decision to fire her. 

The cofounder of a New York art gallery that represents Rodriguez also spoke out in support of her, suggesting without evidence that footage of the machete attack was deceptively manipulated.

“Now all organizations, like the [the American Family Association], have to do is manipulate an iPhone video and characterize Rodriguez as an insane gay black woman professor,” Wendy Olsoff claimed. “With the click of a button, their hateful message of fear, violence, racism, sexism, and homophobia can be sent across the country and the world — meant to target people of color, the LGBTQAI+, women’s rights and anyone who doesn’t fall in line with their agenda.”